Stuck in the Middle
by Lady-Annabeth-Winchester
Summary: Sequel to 'Hells Bells' and 'Burning Heart', Elena and Dean are settled in Mystic Falls but what happens when a familiar face shows up? As civil war wages in heaven, the Winchesters and Elena along with Cas and Bobby deal with old friends and enemies as well as new ones as they battle their personal demons. Dean/Elena Rated M for violence, language, and lemons
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or SPN**

**Sequel to 'Hells Bells' and 'Burning Heart', Elena and Dean are settled in Mystic Falls but what happens when a familiar face shows up? As civil war wages in heaven, the Winchesters and Elena along with Cas and Bobby deal with old friends and enemies as well as new ones as they battle their personal demons. Dean/Elena Rated M for violence, language, and lemons**

**Thank you so much for already reading! I still love all of you!**

**A few things:**

**1. I am not going to skip straight to a year later because I want to show some of the year and what Elena and Dean do. So I'm going to sort of skim over stuff in the next couple of chapters. There might also be flashbacks throughout the story.**

**2. I'm not going to focus too much on the mourning time for Sam. There might be flashbacks to it and I will have scenes with it but it's not going to be incredibly prevalent because if I do, I'll be writing anywhere from five to seven chapters in Mystic Falls and we need to get to the action at some point.**

**3. This chapter is going to be a little bit domestic, I hope you don't mind. It's not going to be very long either because I'm setting up the story and I just wanted to get it up. I promise there is going to be a very long chapter put up by tomorrow night.**

**4. For the music, I'm going to be using a mixture of music like the stuff that's on Supernatural and the stuff that's on TVD. I hope that's okay with everyone. As you've probably seen, it's going to be more weighted towards the music that's on Supernatural because that's just the music I like the most. Sometimes I'll have a lot of music on a chapter and sometimes I'll just have one or two songs, like this chapter.**

* * *

**Music:**

**Spinning Into Place – Vaccine (listened to this while I wrote most of the chapter so it's sort of my inspiration)**

* * *

"So what do we do?" Dean asked, walking to the table where Elena was sitting.

She looked up from where she was reading the newspaper.

"About what?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

They'd been in Mystic Falls for two days now and they were growing more bored as time passed. Jeremy and Alaric were already back in school. Bonnie, Caroline, and Tyler were going to the closest community college. Matt was working at the Grill in a full time job. So they didn't have anyone else around them.

"Our time. We can't just sit around here all day." Dean said, sitting next to her.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I've been looking through the ads." She sighed, gesturing to the newspaper.

"Nothing?" he questioned, pulling it towards him.

"I don't know. Who would hire me? I'm a nineteen-year-old high school dropout." She reminded him.

"I'm a thirty-year-old high school dropout." Dean shrugged, his eyes scanning the paper.

"Yeah but you have your GED so that counts fro something." Elena said, burying her head in her hands.

"Here's something." He said, making her lift her head hopefully. "For me, not for you, unless you want a forty hour work week job at Fuger Motors." He read.

"Dean I'm sure that Ric could get you a job at the school or maybe you could work at the Sheriff's department. You have skills." She informed him.

"I think fixing cars is more my speed. I'll go down there tomorrow." He said.

Elena shook her head, hating that Dean insisted on treating himself like he was stupid.

"Let's go to the Grill. We have to get out there in the world." She said, pulling him up.

"Is that place the only restaurant you have?" he grumbled as they walked to the door.

"Pretty much, yeah." She replied, turning to ock the door once they walked out.

"Uh… Elena?" Dean said questioningly, staring out at the street.

"Hmm?" she said, turning around.

Her jaw dropped whne she saw what he was staring at.

"What… the hell?" she wondered, walking towards the shiny black car sitting on the curb with a big silver bow on the hood.

"Who does this belong to?" Dean said, looking over it.

"Do you like it?" a voice came out of nowhere.

Both of their head whipped around and they tensed when they saw Klaus approaching them.

"This is you?" Elena demanded, stepping forward.

It was nice to be unafraid of the Original since she knew she was stronger than him.

"Call it an offer of peace. A truce?" he suggested, putting his hand on the hood.

"I don't want anything from you." she said icily.

"It's not just from him." they looked to see Elijah standing there. "It's from all of us. A belated birthday present, if you will. Especially since you gave your last car to us… for the short time we had it."

"Short time?" Elena questioned.

Both of the vampires smirked.

"Kol and Bekah got in a fight. It was a petty thing. The small red car ended up in the Atlantic." Klaus shrugged.

"Ocean?" Dean and Elena said at he same time.

"Kol has his ways. It's not near as bad as what happened last time, to be fair." Elijah said.

"Her last car end up in the Baltic?" Dean asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, her favorite horse was in pieces in her bed." Klaus said, still smirking.

"Well that's… sickening." Dean commented.

Elena looked at Elijah, suspicion clear on her face.

"What is this about, Elijah?" she asked.

"We heard you were back in town, for good this time. We wanted to call for peace. We've established ourselves in this town and we don't wish to ruin it." Klaus answered.

"So we're just supposed to trust you? After what you did?" Dean scoffed.

Klaus' eyes narrowed slightly and a dangerous glint flashed through them.

"I don't care what you do, hunter. My deal is with Elena." he fired back.

Elena stepped next to Dean, glaring at the hybrid.

"Any deal you have with me, you have with him." she snapped.

Klaus stared between them.

"Of course, you two are inseparable. Klaus knows that he would have to honor that." Elijah said, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder.

Elena suddenly had the feeling that this peace treaty was not Klaus' idea but rather forced on him by his siblings. Dean's hand slid into hers as if to illustrate the point that they presented a united front.

"We also know that we have you to thank, both of you, for the continued existence of this world. We owe you our lives several times over." Elijah continued.

She glanced over at Klaus.

"You'll leave us alone?"

"I'll do you one better. I already said we like it in this town. We'll help to protect it." Klaus offered.

"And your other siblings? They'll agree to it?" Elena questioned.

"They already have. Rebekah picked this car out for you." Elijah said, gesturing to it.

"I don't need your car." She sighed, shaking her head at the obvious bribery.

"Please, give it a few days. Then decide." Klaus said, handing her a set of keys.

Elena took them unwillingly. When she looked up, the two were walking away.

"That was weird." Dean said.

"Yeah." Elena agreed, pulling the large bow off of the car and shoving it into the backseat.

Then she climbed into the driver's seat and inhaled, smelling the new car scent. Dean slid into the passenger's seat. They looked around at all of the brand new car's fancy gadgets and interior. Then they exchanged a glance.

"No." they said at the same time, climbing out and walking back to the Impala.

* * *

When they got to the Grill, Elena felt as though a spotlight was on them. It seemed like there were more people that she knew from her old life in Mystic Falls. Carol Lockwood was there along with Sheriff Forbes. Dana was there with her parents holding a baby, much to Elena's amusement. They all watched as Matt walked up to them with a smile.

"Hey." He said warmly.

"Hi." Elena said, glancing around the room where everyone was staring.

"Don't worry about them. I think it's floated around town that you moved back because Mrs. Higgins saw you moving your stuff back in the other day. You're just big news but it'll die down." Matt said, walking them to a table.

"Why am I big news? It's not like I didn't grow up here. Did they really think I was never going to come back?" Elena said grumpily, glancing around.

"You coming back isn't the news. It's who you came back with." He said, glancing at Dean.

"What? Dean?" Elena said, sitting down and staring up at Matt.

He simply shrugged.

"Well, I am a little older than you Elena, and I doubt that anyone can't see that." Dean reminded her.

"Well they can go screw themselves. It's not their business." She snapped.

Her eyes went over to the next table where a middle aged couple were gawking at them.

"You heard me." Elena nodded, causing them to look away.

"Elena, calm down." Dean chuckled, taking her hands in his as she pouted.

"Elena doesn't like it when people judge her relationships." Matt said, setting down the menus with a sympathetic look.

"That happen a lot?" Dean asked, rubbing her knuckles soothingly as she glared around.

"Let's just say I wasn't exactly up to caliber for the precious Gilbert founders' descendent." Matt said knowingly, turning to walk off.

Elena bit her lip and stared at Dean.

"I'm sorry. They're all judgmental assholes." She sighed, leaning forward.

"It's fine. I don't expect anything less." He shrugged, used to be treated worse.

Elena reached out and brushed a hair back that fell out of place in his normal style.

"Well you shouldn't have to. You're amazing and they'll all see that sooner or later. And if they don't, screw 'em all. I'll still love you no matter what." She said, smiling at him as she stroked his cheek.

Dean grinned back at her.

"You two are making everyone stare more, if that's possible. Also, Dana is practically squirming in her chair to keep from coming over to you so… be ready for that." Matt said as he brought them drinks.

"Great." Elena sighed.

"Dana?" Dean questioned.

"You'll see." Her and Matt said at the same time.

"What can I get you to eat?" Matt asked as Dean looked vaguely hesitant at their annoyed looks.

He walked away after they gave them their orders and Elena looked at Dean with an apologetic look. Not two seconds later, they saw someone approaching the table out of the corner of their eyes.

"Elena! Oh my God! You look so good!" Dana exclaimed, sauntering up to the table.

"Hey, Dana!" Elena said, rolling her eyes at Dean as she stood and hugged her around the baby that she was still holding.

"It has been so long!" Dana squealed loudly and Elena wondered how the sleeping baby didn't wake up and start screaming.

She must have been used to it.

"Yeah, it has." Elena said.

"Aren't you going to introduce me?" she said, looking over at Dean.

"Uh, yeah. This is my… Dean." Elena said, her brow furrowing.

It felt strange to call him her boyfriend. It seemed like too high school of a word to describe their relationship that was anything but high school.

"I'm Dana. Elena's really good friend from school." Dana sad, grinning flirtatiously at him.

"Dana, how old is your baby?" Elena asked, directing her attention away from Dean.

"Oh only about five months now. You know I was already about two months along when you disappeared." Dana nodded, looking down at the sleeping baby in her arms.

"What's her name?" Elena asked.

"Oh it's Apple. You know, like Gwyneth Paltrow. You know how much I love her." Dana said with a grin.

"Aww that's… cute." Elena fought back a grimace, glancing up at Dean.

"Apple?" he mouthed, looking like he felt terrible for the kid.

"Shh." Elena mouthed back, fighting back a grin.

He simply pressed a gun to his head and mimicked shooting it. Elena giggled and Dana looked up at her.

"I'm sorry you just look… so good. As a mother." She nodded, biting her lip once she finished talking.

"Really? Cause I'm exhausted. My parents won't barely help with her at all. I have to have a job at that old antique shop and I have to take her with me because my mom and dad both work so they can't watch her. All of my friends are gone at college so they can't watch her. The dad… well let's just say he ran away with his tails between his legs as soon as I told him. So I'm just sort of on my own except for the fact that my parents still let me live with them. I just wish that I could find someone to watch her. My parents even offered to pay for me but I can't find anyone who is willing to do it." she sighed.

Elena looked at her, tilting her head slightly.

"How many days a week?" she asked.

"Five." Dana said, staring at her.

"Well, now that I'm back, I sorta need a job. I'll watch her if you bring her over to my house." Elena offered.

"Oh my God! Really?!" Dana squealed, her face lighting up.

"Yeah." Elena nodded, knowing that she would probably regret this.

Dana let out a screech and, before she knew it, Elena was holding the baby as Dana ran off.

"Is she coming back?" she said, looking at Dean with an alarmed look.

"You might be stuck with, uh… Apple… there." he said, smirking.

"Oh shut up." Elena said, looking down at the baby whose eyes were slightly open at the sudden switch.

Her eyes opened fully to reveal dark eyes the exact same color as Dana's. Her hair was dark as well, curling slightly on the ends. Her light pink mouth opened to a yawn, forming a perfect 'o'.

"Okay but you are cute… even if you are named after a fruit." Elena murmured, stroking her cheek with a finger.

Suddenly Dana reappeared in front of her with her parents.

"Isn't it great? Elena just volunteered! I didn't even have to ask her!" Dana said, jumping up and down excitedly.

"It is great, but are you sure, Elena darling? I don't want to have to impose on you." her mother said.

"No it's fine. I've been looking for a job anyways and this way I can keep the house clean too. Jeremy and Mr. Saltzman haven't exactly been keeping their 'bachelor pad' all that neat." She said, turning on the charm for the two adults.

"Well we'd sure appreciate it. How does $400 a week sound?" Dana's father asked.

"Oh, are you sure that isn't too much?" Elena asked, her eyes widening.

Dana's family wasn't exactly hurting for money. Her father was a surgeon at the hospital and her mother was a therapist so they had a good paycheck coming in each month. But it was still a lot.

"Of course not. You'll be doing us a great favor." Dana's mom said, smiling at her.

"Thank you." Elena breathed, smiling.

"No, thank you." Dana said, looking relieved as she took the baby back.

"When can you start?" Dana's father asked.

"As soon as you need me." she said.

"Tomorrow?" Dana asked excitedly.

"How about we give Elena the rest of the week to settle in again? We'll start up next week on Monday." Her mother said, smiling.

"Sounds great." Elena nodded.

"Great." Dana said, grinning.

"Let's leave these two to their meal." Her father said, steering his family away.

Elena sat down, staring at Dean.

"What just happened?" She said, feeling like it all happened so fast.

"You got a job." he said with a grin, taking her hand.

"Yeah… babysitting. I don't even like babysitting. And I'm watching a kid named Apple." She said, letting out a laugh.

Dean chuckled as well just as Matt brought up the food.

"I see you met, uh… one of the fruits of the loom." He said, smirking.

Elena nodded, shaking her head.

"Someone should have really stopped that." Elena said.

"Her mom tried her best. Apple is only her middle name. Her first name is Elizabeth but Dana insisted on calling her Apple. I'm pretty sure that'll change once the kid grows up and realizes what an idiot her mother is." Matt joked, setting the plates down.

"I can only hope so." Elena sighed. "Thanks Matt."

She smiled up at him.

"Yeah, let me know if you need anything." He nodded, smiling at Dean, before walking off.

They'd barely begun to eat their food before another person appeared beside the table.

"Hi, Mayor Lockwood." She said, choking back her food before standing to hug Tyler's mom.

"Hello Elena. It's nice to see you back in town. I just wanted to make sure that you were coming to the Founder's party next weekend. We'd sure love to see the Gilberts there this year." She said with a smile.

"Of course." She nodded, her smile turning into a slight grimace.

"And you have a plus one so I assume you'll be bringing…" Carol trailed off, looking at Dean.

"Oh this is Dean. This is Tyler's mom." Elena introduced each other.

"Ma'am." Dean nodded, standing up and shaking her hand.

"Pleasure." Carol said with a polite smile before turning to Elena.

"Have a good meal. I just wanted to make sure we were going to see you there." she said, patting Elena's arm before turning to walk off.

Elena sighed and sat down.

"Is it always like this?" Dean asked.

"You'd be surprised." She mumbled, digging into her burger and fries.

* * *

The next day, Elena was left alone at the house while Dean went to the garage that he was trying to get a job at. Luckily, Caroline didn't have any classes that day so she came over.

"How's it going?" she asked, watching as Elena folded everyone's laundry.

"I think it's good. I mean, I don't know. Dean isn't exactly an open book when it comes to his emotions." Elena shrugged.

"Neither are you, you know." Caroline said.

Elena looked up at her questioningly.

"You used the go to word for how you feel. The only thing that could have been worst is if you said 'fine'." The blonde said with a knowing look.

Elena sighed, shaking her head.

"I'm just afraid to think about it. I know that I… I miss Sam. I miss him a lot, actually. Sometimes when I think something is funny or Dean says something stupid, I look for Sam to share a smile or an eyeroll with. But he's not there and it sucks. It's only been a few days. I'm not supposed to be this broken up about it." she said, wiping a tear from her eye.

"You loved him like a brother, Elena. You were so protective of him and he was the same about you. It's understandable that you are mourning him." Caroline said, taking her hand.

"I just want to know that Dean's okay. I know he's not and that just makes it worse." She said, looking uncertain.

"Well maybe he just needs a job. Something to distract him just like Dana and her spawn is going to distract you." her friend said, smirking.

Elena shook her head and smiled, nudging Caroline.

"You shouldn't talk like that. The baby isn't all that bad, I'm sure." She scolded her.

"Yeah, I know. But it's too much fun, you know?" Caroline said, laughing.

Elena nodded, grinning as well. Their heads turned at the sound of the door opening and closing.

"Hey." She said as Dean walked into the living room, looking at him expectantly. "How'd it go?"

"Well when I went there, the owner told me that the job was a managerial position then he asked if I had any resume or references. I pretty much knew that I was screwed then when I said no. So he had to tell me no and offered to walk me out." Dean sighed, throwing his jacket over the chair.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Elena said, her brow furrowing.

"Yeah. Then he walks me out and catches a sight of baby. He asks if it's my car and I tell him yes. Then, I mean, I really couldn't make it worse, right? I told him that I rebuilt it from the frame up after it got smashed by an eighteen-wheeler. Which, you know, I did do. He didn't say much, just asking if he could see under her hood because, his words, 'she is a beauty.' I say yes, of course. I open it up and he's got his face inches away from everything, marvelling over all of it as I point out the best features. We spent a good thirty minutes there talking about everything I had to do to rebuild her." Dean explained as he stood there.

A slow smile was spreading across Elena's face as she hoped that she was right about where this story was going.

"Then he suddenly looks up at me and tells me to come back inside. He whistles real loud and tells everyone in the garage to shut up. Then… well…" he shrugged.

"What?" she said, waiting with bated breath.

"Well… he announced me as the new manager of Fuger Motors." Dean said, smiling proudly.

Elena squealed and jumped off the couch, launching into his arms.

"This is so good! I knew you would get a better job than you thought you would!" she breathed, squeezing him tightly.

"Thank you." he whispered, hugging her back.

Elena pulled away from their embrace and planted a wet kiss on his lips.

"We have to celebrate." She announced. "We both have real jobs now and that's exciting."

"I'll leave you to it. I have to go meet Mom for dinner." Caroline said, standing up and grabbing her purse.

"Congratulations, Dean." She said, patting his shoulder before she walked out.

"Let me just go throw these clothes in Jeremy and Ric's rooms. Go open a bottle of something in the kitchen." She said, turning to the clothes.

Dean stopped her and whirled her around, pressing another kiss to her lips.

"I love you." he said.

"I love you too, Mr. Manager." She said proudly, unable to keep a silly grin off of her face.

She ran the clothes upstairs and put them on the boys' beds before taking her and Dean's clothes into her room. When she walked back downstairs and towards the kitchen, she heard a low murmuring. She stopped suddenly to listen.

"Hey Sammy. I know you can't hear me but I have really good news. I got a job. A real job and I'm living in a real house for the first time in a long time. Elena's real happy and stuff. I'm a manager at a garage, just like Dad was before everything happened. It's a big deal, you know? I think you'd be proud of me if you were here. You'd smirk and make fun of me but you would clap me on the back and congratulate me too." Dean said and Elena looked around the corner to see him looking up at the ceiling. "I wish you were here, Sam. I really miss you. I know Elena does too, but we don't talk about it."

A tear slid down her face and she turned, wiping it away but more followed.

"We're trying to be happy here. I'm trying to be happy. But I think it's harder to forget you than you counted on it being. I want my little brother back." he said, his voice catching a few times. "I just wish I had you back."

Elena inhaled deeply and wiped the tears away, pasting a smile on her face.

"Hey, did you find something?" she asked as she walked into the kitchen.

Dean turned and smiled at her, no trace of distress on his face.

"Yeah." He said, holding up a bottle of whiskey.

"How about wine, instead? We are toasting, after all." Elena said, taking the bottle and walking back to the liquor cabinet, pulling it open and replacing the bottle before pulling out a bottle of wine.

Dean watched as she opened it with ease with a corkscrew.

"You're good at that." he said as she popped the cork out.

Elena simply smirked and winked as she poured the liquid into two normal glasses since the wine glasses were dusty and never used.

"To our new jobs." Elena said, holding up her glass.

"To our new jobs." Dean nodded.

Their eyes met just before they took a drink and both of them knew that she'd heard Dean. Both of them knew how much the other missed Sam. But neither of them said anything. They just drank.

* * *

**Author's Note: I'm sorry! I told you it wouldn't be long! I will make it up, I promise. But you got a little taste of how things are going to go for Dean and Elena in Mystic Falls. You saw Elijah and Klaus and you'll be seeing plenty more of the Originals. Next chapter is the Founder's party and Elena pops in on somebody without Dean. Also, this whole 'not talking about Sam' thing is going to come back and bite them in the ass in the next few chapters.**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or SPN**

**Thanks to RHatch89, Deanwinchesterrocks, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, DrawingMyHeartOut, LineChokor, Hollywood17, CherrySin, Dark Alana, diehardromantic, Nyssandria, Whitlocked-kat, chiwi, neontreeslover, slayerdiaries, xxPaige23xx, imusic247, IgnitingFireworks, TheElegantFaerie, **

**To Deanwinchesterrocks, it's probably going to play out similarly as it did in the real show only without Lisa there, obviously.**

**To Dark-Supernatural-Angel, that's what I'm counting on with Elena watching the baby. There will be Dean moments with the baby.**

**To Hollywood17, for now I'm keeping it as Dean who turns but that may change. I don't know yet.**

**To TheElegantFaerie, I don't even know. Things are so twisted up that I don't even know how I would meld the two storylines. I can tell you that there will be a ball thrown by the Originals since we didn't have the party thrown in 'Dangerous Liasons'.**

* * *

**A few things:**

**1. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**2. I didn't say anything but the picture of Elena's car is on my profile.**

**3. The first part of this is going to mostly be Elena's adventures in the first day of her babysitting. There is a lot of singing in this chapter for a good reason.**

**4. This might seem OOC, especially for Dean, but we never really got to see Dean being domestic with Lisa and Ben so I don't have a lot to go off of to write him so I'm having to take a few liberties with the storyline. I hope you don't mind. He'll be back to normal soon, don't worry.**

* * *

**Music:**

**Juke Box Hero – Foreigner (first song sung to Apple)**

**I Can't Dance – Genesis (singing while walking)**

**Something to Talk About – Bonnie Raitt (walking back to the house after confrontation, don't take this literally, obviously they already know that they're together)**

**Under Pressure – Queen & David Bowie (Elena in the kitchen, Jeremy comes in)**

**Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen (Alaric and Jeremy)**

* * *

"Why did I agree to this?" Elena said, running into the kitchen and throwing her coffee cup into the sink.

Jeremy, Alaric, and Dean were watching her with amusement. She stopped and looked at them, a stressed look on her face.

"I hate babysitting!" she exclaimed before running off again to change out of her pajamas.

"I think she's broken." Jeremy whispered.

"She'll be fine. Once she's actually alone with the kid she'll figure everything out and it'll be okay." Dean said.

"I can't find my shoes!" they heard her yell from upstairs.

"You don't need shoes, Elena! You're not leaving the house!" Dean called back.

"Dammit!" was her only reply.

All three of the men chuckled.

"Well we have to go. Good luck with that. And good luck with your new job." Jeremy said, clapping Dean's shoulder.

"Yeah, see you later." Dean nodded as they walked out.

Elena came running downstairs a few minutes later fully dressed, shoes included. Dean caught her as she made to run past him.

"Stop." He instructed.

She stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Breath." He said.

She took a deep breath and nodded, calming a little bit.

"Put you against a nest of demons and you don't flinch. Give you a baby and you're acting like you're going to your death." He said, stroking her hair.

"Don't leave me." she sighed, putting her forehead on his chest.

"Sorry, Lena. I have to. But I know that you'll do fine, okay?" he said, lifting her head with his hands on her cheeks.

Elena nodded unwillingly, biting her lip nervously. Dean leaned down and kissed her softly. She quickly deepened the kiss, wrapping her arms around his shoulders to press them closer.

"Good luck at work. You'll do great." She said with a smile.

"You will too." He said, giving her one more kiss.

Elena watched with a sigh as he turned to walk out the door.

"Dean?" she said, twisting her hands together.

"Yeah?" he said, turning back around.

"He would be proud of you."

They both knew who she was referring to. Dean stared at her for a moment before taking a deep breath and nodding. She smiled at him and he returned it, turning to walk out. Elena sat on the couch fidgeting for the next few minutes until the doorbell rang. Then she jumped and practically ran to the door, pulling it open to see Dana and her father standing there. Apple was in a baby carrier.

"Hey Elena! I have plenty of formula in this diaper bag as well as diapers and wipes and a change of clothes if she needs it. Dad has her carrier and he can show you how to hook it into your car in case you need to go anywhere. We brought a stroller if you need to take her on walks. She loves walks. Also, try not to get anything on her dress. It is too pretty." Dana listed off as she walked in.

Elena stared at her with wide eyes as she rolled the stroller in with everything piled in it.

"Come on, Elena. I'll show you how to hook this into the car." Her father said, looking sympathetic.

"Okay." Elena nodded, following him out with her car keys in her hand.

After a lot of deliberation, she and Dean decided that keeping the car the Originals gave her wasn't a bad idea since she would need a car to drive around in and the Impala was a no-baby zone. It was sitting in the garage now covered up since Dean had to drive a work-truck now that had towing abilities. His boss, Mr. Fuger, lent it to him.

"Sorry about her, she's very excited and stressed at the same time." Dana's father said as he showed her how to buckle the carrier in with the seatbelt.

"It's no problem." Elena said, smiling at him.

He smiled back and pulled the carrier back out, handing it to her. She walked back up with it and Dana was waiting for them to get back.

"I'll see you later, Apple." She said, leaning down to kiss her daughter's forehead. "Thank you so much, Elena."

"It's my pleasure. See you later." She said, waving as she backed towards the door.

When it was closed, Elena set the baby on the dining room table and looked at her.

"Well, what do we do next?" she said.

Dana had called the previous day and went over the strict feeding schedule and everything that she kept Apple on and how often she would sleep. It was another two hours before she was due to be fed so Elena didn't have to worry about that. She leaned down and unbuckled the straps keeping her in the holder before lifting her out gently. The baby almost immediately began to cry.

"Whoa, what did I do?" Elena said, panicking.

Then she noticed the red areas on her skin where the tulle from the dress was scratching her.

"Well that's probably why you're upset." She said, frowning at it.

The dress was far too big and fancy for a simple day dress. Elena looked around before shrugging and snapping her fingers. A soft light pink onsie appeared on Apple, making her crying stop almost immediately. She stared up at Elena with big eyes and cooed slightly.

"Yeah, that's what you wanted. Just keep it quiet, okay? It'll be our little secret." Elena murmured, calling this a victory.

She would return the dress to Apple just before Dana came to pick her up and the other female would be nonethewiser. As she didn't really know what else to do, she took the baby into the living room and sat down, laying her down on her legs.

"You are well-behaved for now. I hope that continues." Elena commented, picking up both of her tiny hands with her fingers.

Apple's little fingers immediately closed around Elena's index fingers with a surprising grip.

"Well you are strong, aren't you?" she said, smiling at her.

Elena moved her hands around, entrancing the baby as she made them go back and forth.

"I have no idea what I'm doing. No I don't." she said, grinning at the baby as she bent down further to look at her.

Apple suddenly let go of one of her fingers to grab a chunk of her hair.

"Ow, okay. Hair up from now on." Elena sighed, wrestling her hair from the baby's grip.

* * *

"You are no longer well-behaved!" Elena whimpered as she bounced the screaming infant up and down while she walked around the house.

She'd had her for three hours now and Apple had been crying for the past hour after being fed. Elena changed her diaper, burped her, laid her down, picked her back up, tried to put her to sleep, and had now resorted to pleading for the infant to quiet down.

"Please, I don't know what you want. I think you're just screaming for no reason." She said, looking down at the red-faced baby.

Finally, when she couldn't take it anymore, she crossed to the stereo system and turned it on, shoving a classic rock mix CD that belonged to her father a long time ago in. Apple's screaming faltered when the music began playing. Elena took a chance and began singing.

"Standing in the rain, with his head hung low. Couldn't get a ticket, it was a sold out show. Heard the roar of the crowd, he could picture the scene! Put his ear to the wall, then like a distant scream! He heard one guitar, just blew him away! He saw stars in his eyes, and the very next day!"

Apple's screaming immediately stopped and she looked up at her with curious eyes.

"Oh that's what you like, huh? Well Dean is going to love your taste in music if he ever gets a hold of you." Elena sighed.

Her face began to screw up again.

"Okay okay! That one guitar, felt good in his hands! Didn't take long, to understand! Just one guitar, slung way down low! Was one way ticket, only one way to go!" she continued singing.

As she matched the lyrics, Elena danced around gently with Apple. The infant suddenly let out an adorable giggle and Elena smiled, thrilled that she finally found a way to calm her down.

* * *

"Hot sun beating down… burning my feet just walking around. Hot sun making me sweat. Gators getting close, hasn't got me yet! I can't dance, I can't talk! Only thing about me is the way I walk. I can't dance, I can't sing! I'm just standing here selling everything." Elena sang as she walked down the sidewalk with Apple in the stroller.

She'd had the infant for five hours now. She took a two-hour nap after the screaming fiasco when Elena finally got her to sleep.

"Blue jeans sitting on the beach, her dog's talking to me, but she's out of reach. She's got a body under that shirt, but all she wants to do is rub my face in the dirt. Cause, I can't dance, I can't talk! Only thing about me is the way I walk. I can't dance, I can't sing! I'm just standing here selling… oh and checking everything is in place, you never know who's looking on." Elena continued singing to keep Apple calm.

"Elena?" she turned to see Mrs. Higgins, the neighborhood gossip, standing there smiling politely at her.

"Hello Mrs. Higgins." Elena said with a smile even though she wanted to berate the woman for being such a loudmouth.

"I saw you walking and I couldn't help but come say hi. Who is this?" she said, bending over the stroller.

Apple let out a cry at seeing her face suddenly.

"You and me both, kid." Elena muttered.

"What was that?" Mrs. Higgins asked.

"Nothing. This is Dana Murphy's baby girl. I'm sort of a nanny for her now." she said.

"Oh but she looks so much like you with that dark hair and those eyes. I could almost mistake her for your daughter." The older woman said, smiling but Elena could see the intent behind her eyes.

She was trying to gather information, probably about Elena and Dean.

"No, she's not mine, Mrs. Higgins. If she was, I'm almost certain that she would have freckles across her nose. Oh and she would have beautiful green flecks in her eyes." Elena said, narrowing her eyes at the woman.

"Green flecks?" Mrs. Higgins questioned, looking interested.

"Yes, green flecks. Because that's what color my Dean's eyes are. This bright, beautiful green color that you can't even imagine exists until you see him. You know what, Mrs. Higgins? If this baby was mine and his, I wouldn't be in the least bit ashamed. There would be nothing to gossip about because I would declare it to the whole world. But it's not our so, unfortunately I can't do that. But trust me when I say, the sex is great and, if I'm lucky, I'll have a kid that looks just like him one day." Mrs. Higgins gasped, looking shocked.

"Have a good day." Elena said with a fake smile before she turned to walk off.

Apple let out a squeal and Elena sighed.

"People are talkin', talkin' bout people. I hear them whisper, you won't believe it. They think we're lovers kept under cover, I just ignore it but they keep sayin' we laugh just a little too loud, stand just a little too close. We stare just a little too long. Maybe they're seein', somethin' we don't darlin'. Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about!" She sang one of Jenna's old favorite songs as she steered them back towards the house.

* * *

Elena vaguely heard the door open but she didn't stop what she was doing. After feeding Apple and putting up with another one of her screaming fits that only lasted ten minutes this time because Elena was smarter now, she went to the grocery store to get much needed food to restock the kitchen. Then she dragged down Jeremy's iPod dock and connected her phone to it, turning on music. Apple was simply sitting buckled into her carrier on the counter and she was quiet content.

"Pressure pushing down on me! Pressing down on you, no man ask for! Under pressure that burns a building down! Splits a family in two! Puts people on streets!" she sang to amuse Apple, who was watching her with the same curious eyes as she danced around the kitchen putting the groceries away.

"Elena?" Jeremy said as he walked in.

It was 5:30, which meant that Dana would be by to pick up Apple in thirty minutes. Elena shook her head and put her hand on his lips as he entered.

"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about! Watching some good friends screaming let me out! Tomorrow gets me higher, pressure on people… people on streets!" she sang, exhausted from the day.

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sing for me for a second." She said pleadingly.

"Why?" he asked.

"She doesn't stop screaming unless I sing." She sighed.

"Chippin' around, kick my brains across the floor. These are the days, when it rains it pours. People on streets… people on streets." Jeremy sang unwillingly, glancing at the happy baby.

Elena smiled at his willingness to do this for her.

"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about! Watching some good friends screaming let me out! Tomorrow gets me higher, higher... pressure on people… people on streets!" he continued, even singing the high parts.

"Turned away from it all like a blind man. Sat on a fence but it don't work. Keep coming up with love but it's so slashed and torn! Why, why, why?" they sang together, grinning as they took each other's hands and began moving together. "Insanity laughs under pressure we're cracking! Can't we give ourselves one more chance? Why can't we give love that one more chance? Why can't we give love, give love, give love?"

Elena laughed as they began jumping and dancing around the room like they hadn't done in years. Apple watched them with delight, laughing.

"Cause love's such an old-fashioned word and love dares you to care for he people on the edge of the night and love dares you to change our way of caring about ourselves. This is our last dance. This is our last dance. This is ourselves under pressure."

Elena sighed with relief once the song ended, practically collapsing in his arms.

"I'm so tired." she mumbled as Alaric walked in clapping.

"Loved the performance." He said, smirking at them.

"You're laughing now but it's your turn." Elena said narrowing her eyes at him.

"Hmm?" he said, his eyes widening.

"I've been singing all day long. In the house, outside on a walk, in the grocery store, back at the house. Someone needs to sing for me." Elena whined.

"You signed up for this." Jeremy chuckled.

"Sing!" she said, pointing between them just as the next track came on.

"Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality. Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see…" Alaric began singing in a high voice, grinning.

Elena let out a chuckle and turned to put the rest of the food away.

"I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy, because I'm easy come, easy go. Little high, little low. Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to me, to me." Jeremy sang.

"Mama, just killed a man, put a gun against his head, pulled my trigger, now he's dead. Mama, life had just begun, but now I've gone and thrown it all away." They sang together, swaying back and forth with their arms over each other's shoulders.

Luckily, Apple was just as captivated by them.

"Mama, ooh, didn't mean to make you cry. If I'm not back again this time tomorrow, carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters." The two males continued.

"Too late, my time has come. Sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time. Goodbye, everybody, I've got to go, gotta leave you all behind and face the truth." Elena began singing with them softly. "Mama, ooh. I don't wanna die, I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all."

"What is going on?" they turned to see Dean walk in, looking surprised.

His face was dirty, his hair was messy, and he had a smudge of grease on his neck. But Elena didn't care, she launched herself at him, burying her face in his shirt.

"Today has been exhausting!" she complained as Alaric and Jeremy continued singing the most ridiculous part of the song.

"I see a little silhouetto of a man, Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango? Thunderbolt and lightning,

Very, very frightening me!" they sang, dancing around each other ridiculously for the infant's amusement and she was very amused.

Dean looked at them strangely before focusing on her again.

"What happened?" he asked, putting his hands on her cheeks.

"She won't stop crying unless someone is singing. And it can't just be the radio. It has to be me or these two idiots or someone really singing. Dana didn't tell me this! I've been singing all day long! I only get rest when she naps and eats! I have to sing while I'm changing her diaper!"

"I'm just a poor boy and nobody loves me! He's just a poor boy from a poor family! Spare him his life from this monstrosity." Alaric and Jeremy continued.

Dean inhaled deeply and looked over at them.

"Well, we might as well join them." He said, taking her hands.

"No I'm so tired!" she whimpered.

"Come on. Just for a few more minutes. It's good for you." he said.

"Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?" Jeremy sang highly.

"Bismillah! No, we will not let you go!" Alaric replied and they repeated this several times as Dean twirled Elena around the room.

She laughed.

"I take it you had a good day." She commented.

"I did." he agreed.

"Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me!" the other two screeched, making Apple gurgle happily.

"So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye? So you think you can love me and leave me to die?" Dean sang along with the other two. "Oh, baby, can't do this to me, baby. Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here."

As the song drew to a close, the doorbell rang.

"Oh thank God she's early." Elena said, starting towards the door.

Then she backtracked and snapped her fingers, changing Apple's comfy onesie back to the uncomfortably dress. The infant whimpered a little.

"I know but we said we would keep it a secret." Elena said, bending over and kissing her forehead before jogging to the door and directing the boys to grab the baby and her stuff.

When she pulled the door open, Dana and her father were standing there.

"Hey! How'd it go?" Dana asked, smiling.

"Great!" Elena said.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't warn you cause it completely slipped my mind but I'm sure you figured it out. Apple loves having people sing to her. My dad does it all the time." she said.

"Oh… really? No I didn't notice that… too much." Elena said, feeling like crying that Dana really did forget to tell her that she would have to sing to the infant all day.

"Here you go." Dean handed her the baby carrier as he walked up.

"Oh, thank you so much." she said, grinning at him.

Elena fought the urge to glare at her.

"We'll see you tomorrow, Elena." Her father said, gathering everything from Jeremy and Alaric before he pulled Dana away from the door.

When it shut, she looked up at Dean with a smile.

"Tell me about your first day." She urged.

"First thing's first. I need a shower." He said, pulling her towards the stairs.

"Thank God, I need to rest." She mumbled, her will to stay upright fading fast.

As soon as they went in the room, she collapsed face first on the bed, immediately curling up into a ball. She vaguely heard the bathroom door close and the shower turned on before she slid into unconsciousness automatically. What seemed like second later, she felt an arm wrapping around her stomach and pulling her into a body.

"Lena." His voice murmured in her ear.

"Mmm." She groaned, trying to hang onto that last shred of her mind that thought she was asleep.

"You've been asleep for two hours." Dean said, kissing her neck lightly.

"Let me sleep more." She grumbled, burying her face in her pillow.

His body shook with his chuckles as he tried to turn her over.

"I thought you wanted to hear about my day." He reminded her.

Elena sighed and slowly turned over, rubbing her eyes as she looked up at him.

"I do. Tell me about your day." She said, fighting back a yawn as she looked up at him.

"Well I worked on cars all day. It wasn't that fascinating." He said, stroking her cheek softly.

Elena bit her lip and turned over, burying her head in his chest.

"You smell good." She acknowledged.

"Yeah, you said that when I tried to wake you up an hour ago." he said, laughing.

"You tried to wake me up before?" she asked, lifting her head.

"Yep. You mumbled that I smelled good, said something about 'too much Queen' and then you went back to sleep. I'm not surprised you don't remember." He said, stroking her back softly where her shirt rode up.

"Ugh I never want to sing again." She whimpered, shuddering.

"Don't be ridiculous. You love singing." He corrected her.

Elena shook her head.

"Not anymore." she sighed.

Dean sat up, pulling her with him.

"No, what…" she began to complain but he propped her up and went behind her, his hands going to her shoulders were he began to massage her tense muscles.

"Okay I agree with that." Elena decided, her head rolling forward to give him more access.

"I thought you would." He said, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck.

"Dean?" she said after a few minutes of basking in the fact that she had the best guy in the world sitting on her bed.

"Hmm?" he replied.

"Do you want to be my date to the Founder's party?" Elena asked.

"I don't know what the hell that is, but sure I'll go." he shrugged.

She smiled and looked back at him.

"Thank you. You'll save my sanity." She informed him.

"Don't be silly, that's long past saving." He joked, kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"You're very… touchy feely." Elena acknowledged.

"I'm happy. I had a good day at work and I got to come home to my beautiful Elena. Is that a bad thing?" Dean asked.

"No." she said, shaking her head. "I like it."

She was just wary at how long it would last.

* * *

Before she knew it, the rest of the week had passed and it was Friday. Dana came to pick up Apple early so that Elena could have plenty of time to get ready for the party that stared at seven. She was wearing a lace cocktail dress with nude pumps and matching jewelry. Dean was wearing a plain black suit with a white dress shirt and no tie at Elena's request.

"This thing stresses me out." Dean said, buttoning up his shirt.

"What?" Elena said, turning to him.

"This fancy thing. It's not something I'm used to." He shrugged.

Elena sighed and turned to him, cupping his face in her hand.

"You will do great. Besides, I don't care if you get drunk and smash up the wine glass pyramid. I'll laugh harder than I ever have at one of these things. And if you get uncomfortable or bored or anything, we'll just leave. There's no hard and fast rule that says we have to stay." Elena shrugged.

Dean still grumbled as he continued to button his shirt and she turned to pull her dress the rest of the way on.

"Can you zip this up?" she asked.

His hand moved over her back as he pulled the zipper up, then he turned her head and pressed a kiss to her lips.

"I'm sorry if I'm stressing you out. I'm just not sure how to handle this." he said.

"Stick with me. I'll be your guide." She said, smiling as she turned and pulled him in for another kiss.

* * *

When they pulled up to the Lockwood manor, they climbed out of the car. Dean insisted on Elena driving since he couldn't cheat on his baby like that even though he was driving his work truck every day. Bonnie and Jeremy were already here and Alaric came with Meredith Fell, who he was starting something with. Elena held out her hand to Dean as he stared up at the large house.

"This is where that Homecoming party was, right?" he asked.

"Yep." Elena nodded as they walked up the driveway.

"Rich people." He said, shaking his head.

She laughed as they walked up to the door. Carol and Tyler were standing there greeting people.

"Mayor." Elena said, smiling at her.

"Elena, Dean. How good to see you here." Carol said, reaching out to squeeze Elena's arm.

"Hey Tyler." Dean said, holding out a hand to shake.

"Hey man, good to see you." Tyler said, shaking his hand.

Elena peeked into the door to see Rebekah walking through the entryway. Her smile faltered a little and Carol glanced back to see who she was staring at.

"They're the oldest vampires in the world. We can't exactly say no to them." She said under her breath.

"Yeah." Elena agreed, taking Dean's hand again and pulling him inside.

"You okay?" he said.

"I tentatively agreed to this truce with the Originals but that doesn't mean I want to test it in front of the entire town of Mystic Falls." She said softly, worry on her face.

They came to a short stop when Klaus appeared in front of them.

"You don't have to worry, lovely. We'll be on our best behavior." He said, smiling at her.

"I'm sure." She said, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Might I say that you look quite beautiful." he said.

"Thank you, buttercup. I worked really hard on my hair." Dean said, smirking at him.

Klaus' smile faltered slightly as Elena's lifted.

"Goodbye, Klaus." she said, pulling Dean past him.

They walked out into the backyard where the actual party was taking place and immediately saw Caroline standing with Bonnie, Jeremy, and the Salvatores.

"I think they're like bugs. There's one around every corner." Elena muttered as they walked towards the group.

"Who?" Dean asked, looking at her.

"The Originals. Except Elijah. I like Elijah." She pointed out.

He laughed and pulled her in, kissing her head as they walked up.

"Ugh. The cuteness again." Damon said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh shut it." Elena said, smiling despite his snarky comment.

"So Elena, how's the babysitting going?" Bonnie asked, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Oh it's great now that I know I have to sing to Apple all the time." she said, rolling her eyes.

"Well at least Dana isn't here." Caroline said optimistically.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure if she was, she'd toss Apple into my arms and take Dean to dance." Elena said.

"And you would get the better end of the deal." Dean muttered, making her laugh.

"Please, young people, spread out and talk to others rather than just amongst yourselves. This is a town-wide party and you are the future of our town. So please…" Mayor Lockwood said as she passed, gesturing to the many people that littered the lawn.

"Come on, let's go get a drink." Elena murmured to Dean.

"Oh thank you." he whispered, sounding eternally grateful as she pulled him towards the outside bar that was set up.

An hour and a half later, Elena was pretty positive that Dean's head was spinning. He'd been introduced to at least fifty people that she knew and his eyes were getting wider by the moment. That's why she let him sit with Damon, Stefan, and Alaric for a while so that people wouldn't hightail it to them to get a chance to talk to Elena's mystery beau. Without them being together, he was much less recognizable. So she was wandering around the lawn by herself sending polite smiles to everyone for about twenty minutes now.

"Hello Elena." she turned to see Elijah and she smiled.

"Thank you." Elena said gratefully.

"For what?" he asked, looking confused.

"For not being another nosy townsperson looking to lecture me about my life." she replied.

"Well, you're welcome." He nodded.

"How are you, Elijah." She laughed, taking his offered elbow and walking with him.

"I'm quite well. My family is actually, well mostly, getting alone. Except for Kol and Rebekah but they never get alone. They're the two youngest so it's always a fight with them." He said.

"And I'm sure that Klaus never fights with anyone." Elena said.

"Not as much anymore. Amazingly enough, I think he really wants there to be peace in our family. That's why he offered the truce to you so that we would not have problems." Elijah said.

"Really? Well… good for him." Elena nodded.

"How are you, Elena? I have noticed the absence of the other Winchester yet I do not know the story behind it." he said.

Elena bit her lip and looked down at her feet.

"Sam, uh… Sam didn't make it through the apocalypse." She said softly.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't intend to bring up anything painful." Elijah said quickly.

"No, it's fine. You didn't know. I just, we don't talk about it, ever." She said.

He looked over at her.

"It would make you feel better if you did talk about it. I know it doesn't seem like it but I promise that it will." He said.

Elena sighed and nodded.

"I know, but it's gonna take time, you know?" she said, turning to look at him.

He nodded as well.

"I do know." He informed her.

Elena turned her head to look around for Dean and that was when she saw Mrs. Cobbins, one of the ladies in Mrs. Higgins' bridge club, walking towards her.

"Oh great." She sighed.

"What?" Elijah said.

"Nosy townsperson wanting to lecture me about my life." she explained as the woman walked up.

If Mrs. Higgins was bad about sticking her nose in everyone's business, Mrs. Kinsler was a thousand times worse.

"Elena, darling. It is so good to see you back in town. You are looking more and more beautiful every day. And so grown up." The older woman said, grasping her hand.

"Thank you, Mrs. Kinsler." She said, smiling politely.

The old woman's eyes swept towards Elijah and she stared at him for a moment.

"I think I will take my leave." He said, taking the hint from her.

Elena shot him a betrayed look and he shrugged, looking lost on what to do.

"Darling Elena. I miss your parents so much but I'm sure not as much as you miss them." Mrs. Kinsler said, pulling her forward into walking with her.

"Yes, I do miss them." Elena said, looking at her with a wary expression as she wondered where she was going with this.

"Don't you think that they would be a little wary of your new addition in your life? I mean allowing a man to live with you in your parents' home with your brother still there? Especially a man of his age. Is it really appropriate? Would Grayson and Miranda be proud of that?" the old woman said, finally revealing her intentions.

Elena stopped short and ripped her hand out of the woman's hands.

"That is it. You can tell everyone what I am about to say for all I care because the whole town needs to know that my personal life is none of their goddamn business." Elena growled, making the woman gasp and her hands flew to her mouth.

"You have no right, none, to make guesses about what my parents would or wouldn't think. You didn't know jack shit about them and you still don't. I happen to know for a fact that my parents would be proud of me and they would be proud of Dean. They would love him and welcome him into our home and our lives. So you do not ever get to say another negative word towards the love of **my** life to my face again. I will repeat. It is none of your fucking business." She ranted, glaring at the woman.

She felt the ground tremor slightly and the table next to them with the champage glass pyramid on it shook slightly, causing the glasses to tinkle together a little bit.

"If I ever hear you say anything about me, my family, or my Dean again, I promise you, you will not like the consequences. Do you understand me, Mrs. Kinsler?" Elena said, glaring down at her with anger pulsing through her veins.

The old woman let out a few sputtering vowels before Elena felt a hand on the small of her back.

"Let's go." Dean murmured in her ear, steering her away.

Elena felt the tension drain from her muscles as he took her hand. She took a deep shuddering breath as she tried to get herself under control.

"You know if I'm not allowed to get drunk and smash the champagne glass pyramid, you're not allowed to blow it up." He said jokingly as he stopped, turning her to face him.

Elena simply took deep breaths, willing her heart rate to slow down from its thundering speed.

"I heard what you said." he informed her, stroking her cheek lightly.

She bit her lip, nodding.

"You're amazing." Dean said, leaning in to kiss her lightly.

It turned out that it was just what she needed. The fury all disappeared and she melted into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

"Thank you." she whispered, burying her face in his shoulder.

"Thank you." he replied, squeezing her to him.

"You ready to get out of here?" she asked.

"Oh yeah. Did you know that there's only hors d'oeuvre here?" he said, sounding traumatized.

"Let's go get a burger." She said, pulling him in the direction of the house.

* * *

It had been about two months. Things were going along as normally as they could. There was no mention of supernatural anything unless it came to the vampires or werewolves, or in Klaus' case, both, that were in Mystic Falls. But Elena was getting bored, even with babysitting Apple every weekday. She couldn't tell if Dean was getting bored. They never really talked about doing anything outside of their daily routine now. On Monday nights they went to the Grill with Alaric and Jeremy. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays Elena or Dean cooked for the four of them. On Fridays they went to the Grill with their friends. On Saturdays and Sundays, they would do whatever they wanted for dinner. Elena hadn't heard from Bobby since the whole thing went down with Lucifer and she was concerned.

Dean never talked about him so she didn't know if he was in contact with the older hunter or not. That's when she decided to go see him herself after Dean left for work and Dana came to drop Apple off. It had been a while since Elena used her powers, outside of zapping the ugly clothes that Dana put on her child off to replace them with normal infant clothes. So she wasn't sure how it would go when she tried to zap right over to Bobby's. She was also unsure about taking Apple with her but she couldn't leave her alone. So she ended up standing in the kitchen holding the carrier with the sleeping baby in it as well as her diaper bag. Luckily, Elena had trained Apple out of needing someone to sing constantly. Now she only needed to hear one or two songs a day to be happy.

Elena sighed, squeezing her eyes shut and concentrating on Bobby's house. When she felt the familiar rush, she opened her eyes to see that she was standing in the salvage yard.

"Yes." She sighed, smiling as she walked up to the door.

Apple hadn't even stirred so that was a plus too. She knocked on it and heard a crash.

"I swear to God if this is one of those Girl Scout sellers…" she heard Bobby's grumpy voice on the other side.

The door ripped open to reveal him in his normal outfit, a dirty hat in place on his head.

"Hey Bobby." She said, smiling.

He simply stared at her for a moment.

"Come 'ere." The older hunter said, gathering her into his arms.

Then he looked down at the carrier in her arms.

"What the…" he began.

"I'm a nanny now." Elena explained.

"Oh well good. That's good." He said. "Come on in."

Elena could see the disappointment in his eyes that Dean wasn't with her. She walked in and smiled around at the familiar home.

"How are things going?" she asked, setting the carrier on the ground next to the table where she sat.

"Good, good. You know, normal for a hunter. You?" he asked, sliding a soda to her and sitting across from her.

"Fine. I mean, every day is kinda the same, you know? None of the crazy adventures that we used to go on." Elena said.

"You're bored." Bobby guessed.

She sighed and took a swig of the soda.

"How'd you know?" she asked.

"I could see it in your eyes the second you opened the door. You're good at hiding your emotions when you want but it's almost like your expression was a cry for help." Bobby informed her.

"Really? Cause I feel like you're the only one who's seeing it. But… I'm not just bored." Elena said, looking down at her hands.

Bobby stared at her questioningly.

"It's just… well… Dean…" she said, unsure of how to put it into words.

"He's not talkin', is he?" Bobby asked.

"Well, we talk. Just… about his work. About my work. About our friends and the town and what to cook next for dinner or what movie want to watch." Elena listed all the things that they did talk about.

"And what about what you don't talk about?" he asked, reading her mind.

Elena bit her lip and looked at him.

"I didn't intend on coming here to unload on you, Bobby." She said regretfully.

"Hey, I'm here for you no matter what you need to talk about. Now I know Dean and I know that he's hard to deal with sometimes, specially when he don't wanna talk about something." Bobby said.

Her shoulders dropped slightly.

"We haven't talked about Sam much at all. Not since… it's not all his fault. It's mine too. I can't bring myself to bring it up and I don't think that he can either. But it's probably a million times harder for him. Sam is… was… his family." Elena said, realizing why she never wanted to talk about Sam.

It hurt so much just saying this stuff to Bobby.

"There's not much I can say. I mean, he won't be shut down forever, Elena. It's only been two months. Give him time. I'm sure he'll come around." Bobby said, patting her hand.

"And if he doesn't? What do I do?" Elena asked, her lip trembling slightly.

"Then you just gotta keep lovin' him. He's a frustrating son of a bitch but I promise you he's worth it." he assured her.

"Oh I know he's worth it. I just don't know how to make him see that." she sighed.

Bobby gave her a sympathetic look.

"Hey have you heard from Cas?" she asked hopefully.

He shook his head, making her heart sink.

"Me neither. He raised me from the dead and… I never heard from him. Dean said he was going back to heaven. I'm just worried, he was a fallen angel until God resurrected him. What if he's still not all that popular in heaven even with Michael in the cage? What if he's…" Elena broke off, not wanting to think about it.

"I'm sure he'll turn up. He always manages to even when we think he's long gone. He has that way about him." Bobby said.

"Yeah, maybe." Elena sighed.

* * *

She was just finishing up cleaning the living room of dishes and such when the front door opened and Dean came in. Apple squealed and waved her arms at him when he walked into the living room.

"Hey Mango." He said, tickling her stomach once before walking to Elena.

"You know, eventually you're going to run out of fruits to call her." she said, tilting her head up to kiss him.

"I'll move onto vegetables." He shrugged.

"You know what those are?" she gasped, placing a hand to her heart.

He just smirked and ruffled her hair.

"I'm gonna go take a shower. Then we can go grocery shopping after Dana picks Clementine up." He said, turning to walk to the stairs.

"Sounds good." She called back, gathering up Jeremy's art that was spread around the living room and placing it all on the dining room table.

The doorbell rang a few minutes later and she walked Apple to the door after changing her clothes back, handing her over to Dana automatically.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She said, grinning.

"No you won't, Dana. Tomorrow is Wednesday, remember?" Elena said.

Dana just looked confused.

"We already discussed it. I have the rest of the week off for the holiday." She reminded her.

"Oh, right. Well then I'll see you next week." Dana said, turning to walk off with Apple and the diaper bag.

Elena shook her head and closed the door, walking up the stairs and into her room. Dean came walking out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist.

"Raspberry's gone?" he asked.

"Do you really have to call her a different name each time?" Elena asked, grinning.

"Only as long as her mother intends on calling her Apple, yes." He nodded, walking up to her and pulling her into a deep kiss.

"Mmm… grocery store." She murmured against his lips as he pulled her into his almost naked body.

"No." he grumbled, pulling her towards the bed.

"Dean, if we don't go now we'll never go and we have to." She said, digging her heels into the ground.

"Damn." He sighed, pulling her in for another kiss before going to get dressed.

Elena pulled on a pair of boots before throwing on a light pink coat and buttoning it up and pulling a matching hat over her curled hair. Dean walked in with his normal clothes on.

"You know, one of these days I'm getting you in a sweater." She said, smirking.

"You are not." He replied as she picked up her purse.

"We'll see." She shrugged, taking his hand that he was holding out.

When they got to the grocery store, it was just as crowded as Elena expected it to be. To her surprise, Dean grabbed a basket and began pushing as she pulled out the list she made.

"What do we need?" he asked.

"I think the safer question is what don't we need." Elena corrected him.

"There's only five of us for this dinner." Dean argued.

"And it's my first time to do this so I'm going all out. It's not like between you, Jer, and Ric, the food won't be gone by Thursday night." Elena said, rolling her eyes.

"True." Dean shrugged.

After getting most of their food, they finally braved the poultry section.

"You sure about this? You can still back out." Dean offered.

"Nope. I am making Thanksgiving dinner and that is that." she nodded, picking up the biggest turkey she could find and hauling it into the cart with a grin.

* * *

"Thank you so much again for helping me." Elena said as Meredith stirred the gravy for the turkey.

"Oh it's no problem. I'm glad to help. I hate just feeling like a lazy person and watching you cook." Meredith said, smiling over at her.

Alaric had been hesitant to bring Meredith into their family life at first but Elena and Jeremy both really liked her and they ended up getting along great so the doctor was coming around more often.

"You mean like those men in there?" Elena said loudly, referring to Jeremy, Dean, and Ric who were watching the annual Thanksgiving Cowboys football game in the living room.

"I made the cranberry sauce!" Dean defended himself.

"You poured it into a bowl from the can!" Elena shot back, shaking her head with a grin.

Meredith laughed along with her because they'd both banned the boys from helping so they were taunting them. They were afraid that they would just sneak food the whole time since they were complaining about being hungry. Meredith went over to take the pumpkin pie that Elena made from scratch out of the oven as well as the apple pie.

"This is a lot of pie." She said, setting it with the cherry pie, pecan pie, and blackberry pie.

"Yeah. Ask my darling boyfriend why." Elena said with a roll of her eyes.

"Pie is awesome!" Dean claimed, raising his fist into the air.

Elena just shared a look with Meredith, shaking her head.

"It's a wonder he doesn't have diabetes yet." She said, finishing up on slicing the ham.

"The food is going to be ready soon, guys! Can one of you come slice up the turkey?" Meredith said as the timer went off for the most important part of the meal.

Alaric came in and Elena handed him a knife before she pulled the tray out of the oven and set it on the granite counter.

"Slice away. Separate the white and dark meat into two piles please." She said.

"Sure thing." He said.

"Anything we can do?" Dean asked as him and Jeremy walked into the kitchen.

"Set the table please?" Elena asked, smiling up at him.

"Sure thing." He nodded, kissing her forehead before gathering cutlery and plates for the table along with her little brother.

She and Meredith began laying the dishes out side by side, marvelling over how much there was yet at the same time wondering if the boys would eat all of the food in record time. Once Alaric finished slicing up the turkey, everyone gathered in the kitchen ready to eat.

"This all looks delicious. Thanks so much, ladies." Ric said proudly, hugging Meredith from the side.

"It's great." Dean said, kissing Elena's temple.

"Well what are you waiting for? Let's dig in. I'm starving." Elena said, gesturing to the food.

They all heaped food onto their plates and walked into the dining room to sit around the table. Bonnie was coming over later so that Jeremy wouldn't be the fifth wheel the entire day but for now he was having to put up with it. Elena grinned over at Dean as they began eating, squeezing his knee with her hand before cutting up her turkey to take a bite. Affirmations of the goodness of the food echoed around the table in between the light conversation. When no one was paying attention to Elena for a moment, her eyes flickered to the empty seat at the other end of the table.

_I wish you were here, Sam._

The thought echoed in her head and she allowed herself a moment to be sad before she forced it to the back of her mind and laughed at a funny story that Meredith was telling.

* * *

**Author's Note: That was a bit longer. Sorry it's not as long as it usually is but I'm having a hard time writing these first few chapters. It picks up a bit in the next chapter. There is going to be a party, a surprise person show up, and a big fight, not particularly in that order. Oh, and also Christmas.**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or SPN**

**Thanks to Deanwinchesterrocks, TheElegantFaerie, RHatch89, Dark Alana, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, LineChokor, Hollywood17, schoch26, diehardromantic, Nyssandria, IgnitingFireworks, xxPaige23xx, chiwi, DamonSalvatorelover789, . .one, DrawingMyHeartOut, CherrySin, slayerdiaries, MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson, Bry Elizabeth M, and the two guests for reviewing! You're all wonderful!**

**To those who are asking, the season six parts (aka the action) begin next chapter.**

**To IgnitingFireworks, Sam is going to have a love interest but it's not going to be Caroline. Sorry. :(**

**To Bry Elizabeth M, yes I have heard of Jenna Marbles and yes she makes me laugh until I cry. Thanks for getting caught up!**

**A few things:**

**1. There will be angst in this chapter and the 'Sam' barrier is finally broken.**

**2. Outfits are on my profile. For everyone except for Elena, imagine that they're wearing what they were originally wearing at the ball in 'Dangerous Liasons'.**

**3. This chapter did not turn out as I hoped but they can't all be winners, right? So I apologize about that.**

**4. Italics are lyrics.**

* * *

**Music:**

**Give Me Love – Ed Sheeran (dance)**

**Cry to Me – Solomon Burke (lakehouse)**

**I Need to Know – Kris Allen (after they dance – you'll know)**

**Holding On and Letting Go – Ross Copperman (talking about Sam)**

* * *

Elena brushed her hair out of her face with a sigh as she packed up the diaper bag.

"I have diapers, powder, wipes, toys…" she listed, pulling the strap onto her shoulder as well as her purse before turning to walk for the door.

Then she stopped short and looked around.

"I don't have the baby. Where the hell is the baby?" she said, panicking.

She ran out of the kitchen and straight into Jeremy, who was holding a giggling Apple.

"I found this munchkin crawling for the stairs. I think she's looking for Dean." He said.

"You little…" Elena sighed, taking her in her arms.

Apple laid her head on her shoulder and cuddled her like she always did to make it up to Elena when she snuck off. Ever since she started crawling Elena had been fighting this fight.

"Do you need a ride to the Grill? I'm going there now." Elena said, looking at his word uniform.

"Nah I don't have to be there for another hour. Why are you going?" Jeremy asked.

"I've been summoned. Apparently there are pressing matters to discuss." She said with a roll of her eyes.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"I'll come with you, then." He said, grabbing his jacket and following her out the door.

"Thank you." she sighed. "Lock it please."

She walked to her car and unlocked it before opening the back door. She placed Apple in the seat.

"Nena!" she squealed, waving her arms at her as Elena buckled up the carseat.

"Yeah that's my name. What do you want?" she said, unable to keep from smiling at the adorable baby.

Apple grabbed her cheeks and brought her down to place a messy kiss to her lips.

"Thank you baby girl. But that doesn't make up for you crawling off." she said, tickling her stomach before shutting the door.

"What do you think he wants?" Jeremy asked once she climbed into the car and turned it on.

"Probably to discuss some impending doom. Let's not lie, we were all expecting it." Elena said as they drove towards the town square.

When they arrived, she grabbed Apple while Jeremy helpfully grabbed her diaper bag. When she walked into the restaurant, she immediately saw her lunch date sitting at a table. Jeremy followed her to where he was.

"Hello lovely, it seems that you've brought added company." He said, smirking up at her.

"It's my brother, Klaus. Not some surprise guest." She said, sitting down in the chair and balancing Apple on her knee.

"If I didn't know any better, I would say that little one I see you carrying around town looks just like you." he said, looking down at her.

Apple giggled and leaned back into Elena, amused by something to do with Klaus though Elena couldn't really think of what could possibly be funny about the hybrid.

"Cut the crap. What do you want?" she demanded.

"Christmas is only a week away." He said.

"Did Elijah buy you a calendar?" Elena said in a fake proud voice.

His eyes narrowed at her sarcastic comment.

"I wanted to meet with you to give you this personally. My other siblings are delivering the other invitations. We prefer to take a more personal approach to our parties." Klaus said, handing her an envelope.

"Party?" she said, raising an eyebrow as she took it.

Klaus nodded and pulled another out of his jacket and handed it to Jeremy.

"What kind of citizens of Mystic Falls would we be if we didn't throw a little get together at our new home?" he askd.

"Normal ones." Jeremy scoffed, making Elena smile slightly.

The hybrid glared between them, obviously having enough with the Gilbert shit for one day.

"The invitation includes a plus one so invite whomever you please." He said, standing up.

"You say that like you know we're coming." Elena said, peering up at him.

He simply smirked.

"I have already given Mr. Donovan my credit card information. Order whatever you like, lunch is on me." he said.

Elena and Jeremy watched as he went.

"Weird." Jeremy said.

"You're not kidding." Elena replied, looking down at the invitation in her hand.

Her first name was written in an elegent scrawl.

"So, are we going to go?" he asked.

"I don't know." She admitted, placing the envelope on the table as Matt walked up.

"You got one too?" he asked, pulling an envelope out of his apron.

"Klaus gave you an invitation?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"No, Rebekah." he said.

"Okay seriously, what are they planning?" Elena wondered out loud.

"I don't think they're planning anything. I think they're just trying to fit in." Matt shrugged.

"There's really no way we're going to find out anything unless we go." Jeremy pointed at.

"I'll talk to Dean." Elena said, looking down at Apple who was tugging on her hair to get her attention.

"Is he okay, by the way?" Jeremy asked.

She looked up at him before nodding.

"Yeah, he's great." She lied.

The truth was it wasn't great. Elena had a feeling that approaching Christmas reminded Dean even more that he was without his brother. She knew that Dean had fond memories of the holiday with his brother. Chances were he would shut down even more until it was all over. She had no idea what to do or she would try to help him.

* * *

"You are doing so good!" Elena exclaimed, holding onto Apple's hands that were gripping her fingers as the infant took slow, clumsy steps on the living room floor.

She couldn't walk by herself by any means but she loved to walk with people holding onto her. Her face looked up at Elena and she grinned widely.

"Den!" she exclaimed.

Elena peered up at the clock.

"He'll be here soon." She said, smiling down at the baby.

It was remarkable that Apple liked Dean so much even though she didn't see him all that much, just every day when he came home from work. Moments later, proving Elena right, the front door opened and closed. Apple looked up to see what the noise was.

"Hey." She said with a smile once Dean walked into the room.

"Hi." He said, walking to her and bending over to kiss her because she was still holding onto Apple's hands.

Apple let out a squeal of happiness when she recognized him.

"Hey squirt." He said, reaching down and grabbing her, lifting her into the air and tossing her a bit.

The infant let out a delighted giggle as she came back down into his arms. He held onto her and turned to look at Elena.

"How was work?" she asked, leaning up to kiss his cheek.

"It was all right. I'm working on rebuilding an engine in a truck. It's taking up most of my time." he said, holding onto Apple casually as they walked into the living room.

"Well that's good." She said as they sat on the couch.

He simply sat Apple in his arms and let her play with his fingers as they faced each other.

"What's that?" he asked, nodding at the envelope on the table.

"Oh it's just an invitation." Elena replied, reaching over to pick it up.

"To another founders party thing?" Dean said, looking exasperated.

"No, to the Originals' house. They're throwing a Christmas winter ball kinda thing in a few days." She explained.

Dean snorted and Elena stared at him, confused at his response.

"Well we're not gonna go, right?" he asked.

"I called Caroline, Bonnie and the Salvatores. They all got one as well as Matt, Jeremy and Tyler. Everyone is invited as well as half the town." She shrugged.

"You wanna go?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know. I mean everyone else is going and I think it would look kinda strange…"

"Since when do you care how you look?" Dean cut her off.

"Well, I don't but… I don't know. It just seems like we should go." Elena said, feeling a little defensive.

"To a house that holds more vampires than either of us are comfortable being around for an evening of drinking and fancy dancing? Really?" Dean said.

"It's a party, Dean. That's what happens in this town. Parties. It's kind of a community thing no matter who is throwing it. I have an obligation." Elena argued.

"Obligation?" he scoffed, unbelieving.

The doorbell chose that moment to ring and Elena stood, pulling Apple out of his arms gently.

"Yes, an obligation." She hissed.

She walked to the door and grabbed the diaper bag before opening.

"Hey, Elena." Dana's mom said, smiling at her.

"Where's Dana?" she asked, handing Apple over.

"She's stuck at work so I'm grabbing the little one and heading home." the woman said with a smile.

"Well I'll see you later." Elena said, waving.

"Oh, are you going to that winter ball at the Mikaelson manor. I've heard it's going to be a great got an invitation today. I was surprised that those young siblings know who we are." Dana's mother said, looking thrilled.

"I don't know yet." She said honestly.

"Oh well I hope to see you there."

"Thank you. Goodbye." Elena waved at her before closing the door.

Dean was leaning against the doorway.

"If you want to go to the party, go to the party." He said, raising his hand in surrender.

Elena sighed and shook her head, looking down at her feet.

"Just… forget the party, Dean." She snapped, turning to walk into the kitchen to get dinner ready.

* * *

"But you're coming, right?" Caroline asked as they perused the dresses the next day.

"Would I be here shopping with you if I wasn't?" Elena said, looking back at Bonnie as she balanced Apple on her hip.

"Is Dean coming?" the witch asked, pulling out a light blue dress and shaking her head before placing it back on the rack.

"I wish I knew." She sighed, thumbing through a row of dresses.

"Ooh that one would look good on you." Caroline said, pointing out a dark blue one.

"I did blue for Miss Mystic. I think I'm going with another color. One I don't wear much." Elena said.

"You don't wear much pink." Bonnie pointed out.

"I'm not wearing pink." Elena said.

"But what if Dean doesn't come?" Caroline asked, continuing the conversation.

"Then he doesn't come." She shrugged.

Both of the girls looked at her sympathetically.

"I don't know, Care. Dean can do what he wants. It's not like I can force him to go. He's a grown man, he should be able to make his own decisions without reproach and I should be able to make mine." She sighed, moving past Caroline to inspect another rack.

"Does this have to do with why he's in such a bad mood lately?" Bonnie questioned.

"You've noticed, huh?" Elena mumbled.

"It's kinda hard not to. He just doesn't talk as much. Not that he was that much of a talker in the first place." Caroline pointed out.

"It's just the holidays. It's his first without Sam in a few years and, it sucks." she said.

"Elena, I'm not pushing, I promise. But you haven't even told us what happened with Sam. I mean, we know the basics but…" Bonnie said.

"I don't want to talk about it." Elena cut her off, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry." She sighed. "I just don't want to talk about it with anyone before I talk about it with Dean."

"You and Dean still haven't talked about it? Elena it's been four months." Caroline said.

"I'm working up to it. It's harder than you think. I have to find the perfect moment because if I ask too soon, Dean will shut down. If I ask too late, he might think I don't care. I'm just… waiting it out. For now, he still can't hear Sam's name without flinching." She explained.

"You're gonna have to talk about it at some point." Bonnie said.

"I know, but don't you think we have a while? I mean, it's not like we're going anywhere." Elena said.

Then her eyes fell on a dress and she pulled it out.

"What about this one?" she asked, turning and holding up against her chest while minding Apple's presence.

"I love it." they said together, grinning as Apple cooed and grabbed a hold of the hanger.

* * *

A few days later, it was time for the ball. Elena and Dean hadn't approached the subject of it again and their time around each other had been less than warm and friendly. But when the day came, a Saturday, she knew she had to talk to him about it. When she woke up it was almost one in the afternoon and he was still sleeping. She immediately climbed into the shower. When she got out, he wasn't in the room anymore. She threw on a pair of comfortable clothes and walked downstairs to find him making sandwiches for them.

"Alaric and Jeremy are gone." Dean said, turning to glance at her.

"They're out renting tuxedos." Elena said, taking a plate from him.

He didn't say anything and Elena sighed, jumping up onto the counter with her legs dangling off as she ate.

"Jeremy was going to use my dad's tux but it doesn't fit him right. My dad was pretty tall and muscular and Jer isn't quite there yet." She said.

"Hmm." Dean replied, turning to her as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"He decided that it would fit you better." She said, glancing down at her lap as she put her plate on the counter.

"Elena…" Dean sighed.

"Would it kill you to go?" she asked, interrupting him.

He stared back at her.

"Maybe I just don't want to go." he shot back, defensive all of the sudden.

Elena stared at him for a moment.

"Fine." She said before jumping off of the counter.

"Where are you going?" he asked, following her as she walked out of the room.

"I promised Caroline I would go to her house and get ready there with Bonnie. My dress and stuff is there anyways. So I'm gonna go ahead and go over there." Elena said, trying to keep her anger and hurt under control.

"You're just leaving?" Dean asked, sounding surprised.

"I don't want to fight with you. So yeah, I'm gonna go." she said.

"Fight with me?" he said, confused.

Elena whirled around, halfway up the steps.

"Yes, Dean. Fight with you. About how you're in a bad mood almost all the time or about how you absolutely refuse to talk to me." she snapped.

"We talk all the time." he said defensively.

Her eyes narrowed.

"You know what I mean, Dean. Before there wasn't a single thing we wouldn't talk about. We learned our lesson. But now neither of us will even dare broach the topic that we know we need to talk about."

Dean stared at her, knowing exactly what she was talking about. He didn't say anything, a perfect symbolism of their relationship nowadays.

"Yeah." She nodded, turning to run upstairs.

"Elean, just…" Dean muttered, following her.

"I can't talk about that." he said, watching as she yanked on a pair of shoes and grabbed her purse.

"Can't or won't?" Elena shot back, looking up at him.

Dean simply sighed in response, rubbing his forehead frustratingly.

"That's what I thought." She nodded, moving to walk past him.

"What do you want me to say?" he demanded, turning to follow her.

Elena whirled around on the top step, emotion twisting her face.

"Something, Dean! I want you to say something! I want you to trust me enough to talk about your brother with me! I want you to know that you don't have to squash down whatever feelings you have! I don't want you to shut it all up inside! That's what I want!" she yelled.

"It's not as easy as you make it sound, Elena!" he shot back, following her as she ran down the stairs.

"I never said it was easy, Dean! But that doesn't mean that you should shut it all up inside just cause it's hard to talk about! Maybe it might make you feel better to talk about it! I'm not saying I'm any better! Hell I've been keeping it all up inside but I know that we need to talk about it or we're going to keep going on this downhill slope that we've been on!" she said, gesturing wildly as she turned in the entry way.

Dean stared at her.

"I just can't… Elena." he sighed.

Elena took a deep breath, calming herself.

"Dean, if there's anything that being with me for the last year should have taught you, it's that actually talking about things instead of burying them all deep inside under a cover of fake happiness makes you feel better. If you'd just talk about it..."

"I don't want to talk about Sammy, dammit!" he yelled, a spark of anger in his eyes.

Elena was taken aback for several reasons. First of all, it took a lot to make Dean yell in such a way. Second of all, he used his nickname for Sam. She stared at him for a moment.

"I'm gonna… go." she said, backing away.

Dean's eyes widened as he realized that he'd shouted at her when she was trying to help him.

"Elena, I'm…" he began, starting forward.

"No don't. You're right. I shouldn't be prying. Don't come to the party, I'm sorry for asking you to when you obviously don't want to celebrate anything." She said numbly, fumbling in her purse to pull out her keys.

"Elena!" Dean said as she turned to run out.

She stopped at the door and bit her lip hard to keep the tears back.

"He wouldn't have wanted this, Dean. He wouldn't have wanted this to get between us." She said softly before running out.

Dean groaned and ran his fingers through his hair, sitting on the top step and wondering how he'd let it get this bad without even realizing it.

* * *

"He might still come." Bonnie said.

"Please, Bon, I just don't want to talk about it. I just want to have this night and then I'll go to him tomorrow and I'll talk about it with him once we've both had a little time. Speaking of, can I stay here tonight?" Elena asked.

Both of her friends looked at her with sympathy.

"Don't do that. I'm fine. Everything will be fine we just have to get past this and we'll be great." She said as she pulled her hair up into a complicated updo that Jenna taught her piece-by-piece.

"Do you want to call one of the Salvatores? See if they'll be your date?" Caroline suggested.

"Yes because that's just what I need. The entire town whispering about the fact that I show up to the ball without my boyfriend and with another man. That's just the information that I need to get back to Dean when we're fighting. I'll go stag, Caroline. It'll be fine." Elena said, shaking her head.

"That's kind of depressing." The blonde said bluntly.

Bonnie nudged her but Elena let out a soft laugh.

"Yeah, pretty much my life right now. Thanks for summing it up into one word for me." she said.

"At least you're going to look pretty." Bonnie said, looking over to where their dresses were all lying side-by-side on Caroline's bed with their jewelry and shoes beside them.

Elena looked over at them as well, biting her lip as she wondered if she should really be going to this ball or if she should be going home to figure things out with Dean.

"At least." She sighed.

* * *

"Hey man." Jeremy said, stepping into the doorway.

Dean was sitting on the edge of the bed with his elbows on his knees. He looked up to see the younger Gilbert half dressed in a tuxedo.

"Hey, looking sharp." He said, smirking at him.

"Thanks." Jeremy chuckled, pulling at his collar.

Then he held up what he was holding in his other hand, hanging it over the hook that Elena had on the back of her bathroom door.

"What's that?" Dean asked, inspecting the bag.

"Dad's tux… just in case you change your mind." He said, turning back to face him.

Dean sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

"I'm not going, Jer. She doesn't want me there." he said.

"You kidding me? If she didn't want you there, why do you think you got in a fight about you going?" Jeremy asked.

"She told me not to come." Dean reminded him.

"Reverse psychology, Dean. Elena is really good at it. She's hoping that you'll realize that she didn't mean it and come anyways." The younger male said, patting his shoulder.

"I have been dealing with girls for… a while. And I never got any of that reverse psychology shit. So how do you know when they're serious and when they are wanting you to do the exact opposite?" Dean asked.

"You listen to them." Jeremy shrugged.

Dean shook his head and looked down.

"I just don't feel much like celebrating." He admitted.

"Why not?" Jeremy asked, sitting next to him on the bed.

"Sam… he used to love this time. Christmas. It was his favorite time of the year when we were growing up. Because there was no school and we would usually just whole up in a motel room without having to travel across the country. Dad might actually be there sometimes. Now, it just seems… depressing." Dean sighed.

"Why does it have to be about your brother and your dad?" Jeremy asked.

Dean looked up at him questioningly.

"Okay I don't get touchy feely a lot, so this is going to be a rare occurrence. But instead of looking back at the family that you had before, why don't you look around at the one you have now. Mainly Elena. I mean, don't forget your father and brother but do you really think that they would want you to stop being happy because of them? Trust me when I say that no matter how frustrating Elena gets, you have to remember that she is really just trying to make everything better. It's what she does. She's always trying to fix stuff even when it's not her fault that it's broken. I think it's just occurred to her just how bad the divide between you two got and she's scrambling to pick it all up before it shatters completely." Jeremy explained.

"I don't know how to fix it. Honestly, I'm not good at this whole relationship thing." Dean said.

"You've been in it for a year so you have to be doing something right. But if I could give you a hint, it would be putting on that tuxedo and going to that party." The younger man said.

Dean glanced up at the hanging bag with uncertainty.

"Do you want to fix it?" Jeremy asked.

"Of course I do." He said, nodding.

"Then let's get you to the ball, princess." Jeremy said jokingly.

Dean chuckled and shoved him away, standing up to take a shower.

* * *

After conversing about it, they decided that Bonnie and Caroline would meet their dates at the party so that the girls could ride together. Elena was driving her car. When they pulled up to the Originals' manor, they found that the party was already in full swing, a littering of cars covering the drive.

"Wow, this is…" Caroline trailed off as they climbed out of the car.

"Incredible." Elena finished for her, gathering her dress up to walk over the rocky path.

"Yeah." The other two agreed.

The house was truly beautiful, sprawled across a beautiful landscape with trees lining it. They shivered against the cold and proceeded to walk up to it.

"Names." A woman asked at the door, holding a clipboard.

"Elena Gilbert." Elena said.

"Ah, yes. And your plus one is here." She said, checking it off.

"My what?" Elena said, surprised.

"Your guest." The woman said, ushering her forward so that she could ask Caroline and Bonnie for their names.

Elena's brow was furrowed as she walked into the house. A man standing there asked for her coat and she shed it immediately, handing it to him along with her name. She shivered against the cold draft as her eyes scanned the crowd. They fell on Jeremy standing with Alaric, Damon and Stefan. Caroline and Bonnie walked in and Elena sighed, moving forward to ask about the plus one thing. That's when she saw him standing just behind Ric. He looked uncomfortable and he was squirming a bit in the tuxedo that fit him perfectly. Elena was shocked to say the least. When they finally noticed her standing there once Bonnie and Caroline joined her, his eyes fell on her.

"He's here." Caroline said, grinning when she noticed Dean's presence.

Elena didn't answer, just staring at him. His eyes looked over her and she felt herself blushing at the look in his eyes. It was reminiscent of something she hadn't seen in a very long time, since before Lucifer even rose. He was looking at her like he did on the Dracula shapeshifting case when she'd been forced into that white dress. His eyes were burning and full of something unidentifiable. He stepped forward and she felt her heart thundering in her chest. Caroline and Bonnie conveniently went to their dates, leaving her alone for him to approach.

"Dean." She said once he reached her.

He stopped her, reaching out to hold her hand. Elena didn't stop him.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you, I'm sorry. You were just trying to help and I was… a dick." He said.

Elena didn't say anything, just staring at him.

"The truth is, I was having a hard time imagining a life without Sam. It just wasn't happening. I was too stupid to realize that I was living that life and that I could have been happier if I just tried. You were there and that's all that I needed. So I'm sorry for not realizing that sooner."

She still stared, pressing her lips together.

"Elena?" he said questioningly.

"There's no reason for you to be sorry. You were mourning. You still are." She said in a soft voice, stepping forward.

She pulled him into a hug, laying her head on his shoulder. Dean sighed and wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.

"I love you." she whispered.

"I love you too." He replied quietly.

The sound of metal on glass sounded and they looked up to see the Original siblings all standing on the staircase looking impeccable in their formal dress. It was Elijah who spoke.

"Welcome, thank you for joining us. You know whenever we come together and our family is brought together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a centuries old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourself a partner, please join us in the ballroom." He said, smiling around at everyone.

People began moving towards the ballroom and Elena looked up at Dean.

"We can respectfully decline." She said with a slight smile.

He caught her hand before she could pull away.

"Will you do the honor of dancing with me, Miss Gilbert?" he asked, bowing dramatically.

Elena smiled, nodding her head.

"Of course, Mr. Winchester." She said, curtsying just as dramatically.

"You know how to do a waltz?" she questioned as they walked into the ballroom.

"Dance instructor in California. The waltz was like foreplay for her." Dean grumbled.

"Ew!" Elena complained, giggling as she shook her head.

They got several dirty looks for her outburst.

"Shh, you'll bother the old bats." Dean whispered, his eyes falling on Mrs. Higgins and Mrs. Kinsler, who were standing in a corner whispering to each other.

Elena and Dean both picked up their hands and waved. Dean even went so far as to wink at the two women. They looked scandalized as they turned away and Elena laughed again.

"You've been a bad influence on me." she decided.

"Who, me?" Dean said innocently as they got in position.

She grinned at him. When they began to dance, she figured out that he was not lying about knowing how to dance. In fact, he was quite good at it.

"You look beautiful." Dean said, looking over at her as they walked forward with the other couples, their hands joined together.

"Thank you. You look very handsome. James Bond like." Elena replied, looking him up and down.

"License to kill." He winked as they turned.

"The necklace and earrings belonged to my mom. My dad got them for her for their twentieth anniversary. She left them to me but I've never had any reason to wear them until now." Elena said, referring to the sparkling jewelry she was wearing.

"Well they look great on you." Dean informed her.

"You're so kind." Elena replied, grinning.

He twirled her away and back as they got in the traditional waltz hold.

"The dance instructor had a friend." Dean began.

"Oh I don't want to hear." She said, shaking her head.

"No let me talk. She had a friend who was also in dance. So naturally I brought Sammy along to see if I could get him hooked up so he'd stop being so sour. The girl tried to teach him how to dance. He ended up stumbling over his big feet and bringing both of them crashing down to the floor. It was one of the funniest things I've seen in my life." Dean chuckled.

Elena let out a soft laugh.

"I can actually see it happening. He is pretty big." She admitted, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

Then she looked up at him.

"You know what? Screw this party." She said.

"What?" Dean said, screwing his forehead together.

"You're right. I don't feel comfortable at these things either. They're… uptight. How about, after this dance, we get out of here. We'll go home and pack up a bag and we'll go to the lakehouse for a couple of days. We could use a few days off alone. Then we can be back in time to celebrate Christmas with the family." Elena suggested.

Dean stared at her.

"I would love that." he admitted.

She grinned and he realized how much he missed the way her eyes lit up when she was really smiling.

"Let's just suffer through this dance and we'll be on our way." Elena nodded, hardly able to contain her excitement.

"It's not suffering. Trust me." Dean said, smiling at her.

She grinned at him as they continued dancing. When the song was over, they joined hands and turned to walk out of the room. Elijah was standing there, stopping them.

"Oh Elijah. Hello." Elena said, smiling at him.

"Leaving so soon?" he asked.

"We have some things we have to attend to. I am sorry." Elena said honestly.

"Do not concern yourself with it. It was nice of you to make an appearance. I saw that you were leaving and I wanted to give you this." he said, handing her a bottle of wine.

"Oh, thank you." she said, surprised.

"Merry Christmas, Elena." he said, smiling at her before turning to walk off.

"Think it's poisoned?" Dean whispered.

She shot him a look, shaking her head.

"Then let's bring it." he decided.

Elena turned and waved at Caroline as they left, the only person she could see in the crowd. The blonde waved back excitedly and gave her two thumbs up.

"So what made you come?" Elena asked as Dean helped her into the jacket that the attendant handed over.

"Your brother." Dean said, taking her hand once again and leading her out of the house.

"Jeremy?" she said, surprised.

"He talked to me, made me realize what an idiot I've been." Dean shrugged.

She laughed.

"He's good at that sometimes." Elena nodded.

Dean walked to the passenger door and opened it for her.

"Such a gentleman." She sighed, handing the keys over to him.

"I try." He shrugged, grinning.

They were silent on the way home, one of Elena's mix CD's playing softly as they simply joined hands. Every once in a while, she glanced over at Dean.

"What?" he finally said as they pulled up to her house, smiling over at her.

"Nothing it's just… it feels strange, you know? I feel like the last four months have just… disappeared." She shrugged.

"I hope so." Dean sighed, climbing out and walking around to help her out.

Elena stopped him and looked up into his eyes.

"Thank you, for coming tonight. For showing me that you want to make this better." She said softly, reaching up to stroke his cheek.

"Thank you for not giving up on me." he replied.

"Never." Elena said, smiling as she leaned up to place a kiss on his lips.

"Are you sure you're okay with leaving that party?" he asked.

"I would rather be with you." Elena confirmed. "Anyways, we'll spend Christmas with everyone who matters to make up for it."

When they got inside, they immediately began stripping off their formal wear. Dean unzipped her gown and she helped him by untying his tie.

"Damn, who did this thing?" she asked, picking at it for the last five minutes.

"Alaric. None of us were too certain about how to tie it so I think he just did a knot and hoped it looked good." Dean admitted.

"Men." Elena said, rolling her eyes and smiling up at him.

"Hey, you love us." Dean said once she finally got the thing untied.

"I do, unfortunately." She sighed dramatically, hanging her dress up in the closet.

Then she walked to the dressing table and pulled off the jewelry, laying it on the table.

"You really do look beautiful." Dean said as he pulled on his normal clothing.

Elena smiled at him while pulling on clothes. After she finished, she walked into the bathroom to pull all of the pins out of her hair. Luckily, since she didn't have to use hairspray, she was able to fix it to look relatively normal and curly. Then she walked out and grabbed a backpack, shoving clothes into it without really paying attention. When they had everything gathered together, including the wine to take with them to the lakehouse, they walked downstairs.

"Ready?" Dean asked, seeming excited over the prospect of having a few days to himself.

They would call their respective jobs the next day and let them know that they wouldn't be working on Monday and then the next day was Christmas eve so they didn't have to worry about that.

"Hold on, I'm going to leave a note." Elena said, running to the kitchen to scrawl out a note quickly.

When she looked up, Dean was standing there, ready to go.

"We're going to have to stop and get food on the way. There isn't going to be any there." she explained as they walked out of the house.

"Hey." He caught her as she turned to walk down the sidewalk.

"Thank you for this." he murmured before kissing her.

"Thank you for being amazing." She whispered back, feeling like this was a new start for them.

It felt so reminiscent of the aftermath of their first kiss. They were both giddy and excited.

"Let's go." she said, grinning.

* * *

When they arrived at the lakehouse after driving for an hour and getting groceries from the nearest town, they immediately climbed out and walked up with the food and the bags in their hands.

"This is really nice." Dean commented, looking around.

"Yeah, it is. It's technically mine though I'm probably going to end up signing it over to Jeremy when he turns eighteen. He'll use it more than me. He loves it out here." Elena said, unlocking the door.

Dean stood in the entry way as she walked around turning on lights and turning the heater on in the freezing cold house.

"Wow." He mumbled, following her into the kitchen to put the food away.

"Do you want to go see the lake?" Elena asked once they finished even though it was pitch black outside.

"Sure." He said.

She took his hand and led him out of the house by his hand. They walked out onto the dock and stood at the edge. Elena curled into him as he wrapped his arms around her.

"We grew up here, me and Jer. We would always come here for holidays and a lot during the summer. My parents loved it here." Elena said.

"Sounds amazing." Dean commented.

Elena looked up at him.

"I'm sorry." She said regretfully.

"For what?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"I don't know. I just feel horrible whenever I talk about my normal life growing up. It's like I'm waving it in your face that you didn't have a normal childhood and…" she was cut off by his lips on hers.

"Do not ever feel like you have to keep those memories to yourself for my benefit. I love hearing about it." he reprimanded her.

"Okay." She breathed, nodding.

"Let's go inside and pop open that bottle of wine with a nice fire going." Dean said, leading her back towards the house.

"Wine and a fire in a house all alone. Mr. Winchester if I didn't know any better I'd think you were trying to seduce me." Elena said, grinning.

Dean simply winked at her as he opened the door. They walked into the living room and Elena watched as he started a fire.

"Isn't it funny that you learned how to burn stuff by burning bones?" Elena said, grinning.

"If by funny you mean sad, sure." Dean said, smirking at her as he poured the wine into two glasses.

"It's not sad. It's… interesting." She said, taking her glass from him.

They sipped at it as they curled on the couch.

"You know, we almost look like a normal couple." She informed him.

"We are a normal couple." He defended.

"Dean there's a flask of holy water in my glove compartment, my dagger is in my purse and I happen to know for a fact that you have weapons hidden even at work." She said, staring over at him.

"Okay so we're somewhat normal. But just because we're retired doesn't mean the monsters are. And if we don't get found soon by at least something, I'll be shocked." Dean said.

"True." Elena nodded, looking over at him.

Dean stared at her for a moment before leaning over to kiss her. He took the glass from her hand and placed it on the table before pulling her closer to him. Before she knew it, she was straddling him and kissing him thoroughly. When he began to kiss down her neck, she let out a sharp breath, remembering her experience in heaven. The memory that her mother showed her flashed through her head. The atmosphere was right. The timing was right. She pushed his jacket off of him before yanking his shirt over his head. Their kissing grew more passionate and he was suddenly trying to tug her shirt over her head.

"Dean." She murmured, pulling away and looking at him.

"Sorry. You don't want to…" he began.

"No, I do. I'm just gonna go change." She said.

"Okay." He nodded.

Elena slid off of his lap and looked at the old record player in the corner.

"You should put some music on. The records are in the cabinet underneath. No Zepplin." She said, smiling as she walked towards the bedroom.

She went through her bag and sure enough found the black babydoll dress that she'd been wearing when she saw the scene in heaven.

"This is weird." She said, slipping her clothes off and pulling the dress on.

When she padded back into the room barefoot, she heard the music start on the record player. Sure enough, it was Solomon Burke. Dean looked over as she entered, smiling at the dress that she was wearing.

"I like it." he commented, reaching out for her.

"Dance with me?" she asked, looking up at him as she took his hand.

Dean stared down at her for a moment before nodding. He led her to the fireplace slowly and gathered her in his arms. Elena's eyes slid closed as she laid her head on his warm, bare chest. They swayed around the small space slowly, moving gracefully together. The overhanging sadness was in the room just as she sensed when she saw this scene for the first time.

_When you're all alone in your lonely room… and there's nothing but the smell of her perfume. Ah don't you feel like crying? Don't you feel like crying? Ah don't you feel like crying? Come on, come on cry to me._

He suddenly took her hand and twirled her out, causing her eyes to fly open. Their eyes met when they came back together, striking green meeting soft brown. One of Elena's arms was thrown around his neck and the other in his hand.

_Well nothing could be sadder… than a glass of wine, all alone. Loneliness, loneliness, it's such a waste of time. Oh-oh yeah. You don't ever have to walk alone, oh you see. Oh come on, take my hand and baby won't you walk with me?_

Dean slowly dipped her down and back up, her hand on his chest to balance her. They stared at each other for a few more moments before they slowly and wordlessly came together, their mouths searching each other out. It was a slow, soft kiss at first. As their kissing got more intense, Dean easily lifted her into his arms and she wrapped her legs around his waist. They withdrew to stare at each other, sadness in both of their eyes.

"I love you." she murmured, stroking his cheek softly.

"I love you too." He whispered brokenly.

**LEMONY**

Their kissing resumed and, before she knew it, they were lying on the soft carpet in front of the fireplace and Dean was hovering over her. His lips trailed down her neck slowly and softly, making her entire body tingle and tremble.

"Dean." She sighed, leaning her head back and running her fingers through his soft hair.

His hands pushed the dress up her thighs and gripped her hips when they reached them. Finally he pushed it over her head, leaving her in her undergarments.

"I need you." she murmured, pulling him down to her.

"You have me." he whispered back.

His jeans were quickly gone and he lay back down with her, their lips melding together perfectly. His hand went behind her back to undo her bra easily. It was quickly thrown across the room and she looked up at him, their eyes meeting. His hand trailed up her torso and slid over her breast, flicking her hardened pebble with his thumb.

"Dean, please!" she whimpered, wriggling underneath him.

He didn't stop torturing her, kissing all over her body very slowly before sliding her panties off. He kissed up her thighs and his fingers eventually found her core, stroking the heated area softly as she cried out, her hands searching for something to grip tightly. His lips found hers as his finger slid into her, quickly joined by another as his thumb swept over her sweet spot.

"Please." She whined against his lips once more.

Her hands yanked his boxers off as quickly as they could, throwing them off quickly so that her hands could return to holding onto him. She accepted him, spreading her legs so that he could slide into her. Both of them moaned at the contact, their bodies entwined intricately as they moved together in the most intimate way possible. They couldn't stop kissing, wanting every part of their bodies touching with no space between them. Surprisingly, the carpet didn't hurt her as he slid in and out of her slowly, making love to her.

Their hand entwined together just above her head and their cries of pleasure were drowned out by their continued need to kiss. When they finally reached their climax at the same time, Elena buried her face in his neck as he buried his own in her hair. Their hearts pounded in their chests as they simply laid there, Dean turning over so that Elena could lie on his chest.

**END LEMONY**

After a few minutes of recovery, he stood up and grabbed a blanket that was folded in the corner. He came back and pulled it over their lower bodies as they curled up again, their legs tangled together and her head lying on his chest.

"You know, it was about summertime that I had my first really good memory after my mom died." Dean said.

Elena sat up and looked at him, trailing her fingers over his chest.

"Yeah?" she said.

"It wasn't even a year after she died. My dad was still depressed and I think that he was slowly figuring out that everything wasn't as it seemed in the world. He was gone a lot researching and stuff but he was home that day. Sammy had been trying to walk but he couldn't quite get the hang of it without help. But something changed that day. I was sitting on the ground across the room watching him play with Dad on the couch. He just stood up from where he was sitting and playing. He said my name, a lot like Apple says it, you know. And then he walked right over to me and plopped down in my lap, hugging me. I just sat there, all of five-years-old, and I held him for a long time. I remember looking up at Dad and seeing him watching us with this look in his eye, like we were gonna disappear. Then he kept writing in that journal of his. He looked sadder than normal. I think he knew that this fight was gonna take everything from him. Even me and Sammy." Dean said.

Elena remained silent for a moment before looking up at him.

"I miss him, Dean." She admitted softly.

"I do too. I miss him so damn much. It hurts… all the time. Sometimes I wonder if it'll ever stop hurting but I don't know if it will. I just want my little brother back." Dean whispered brokenly, tears filling his eyes.

"I know you do." Elena said, tears sliding down her own face as she stroked his cheek.

"You're keeping me together. I know it seems like I am withdrawing but really you're the only thing that's holding me together. I love you so much." Dean said, holding her hand against his face.

"I love you too." She sighed, brushing her lips against his.

They laid there, occassionally talking about Sam because the dam was broken now. They relived good memories, cried over him, and kissed mostly. That's how they remained all night until they fell asleep in front of the fireplace.

* * *

It was Christmas Day. Everyone was there. They'd already had Christmas with their families so now they were having it with Elena, Dean, Jeremy, and Alaric. Even Bobby, Ellen, and Jo were there, Elena having transported them there for the Christmas celebration. They were all laughing and drinking egg nog and hot chocolate while opening each other's presents. Everyone was wearing ugly Christmas sweaters, including Dean who was threatened by Elena unless he wore it. He grumbled but still put it on when she gave him her famous pleading look. She got Dean a Vonnegut book collection and he got her a collection of classic rock CD's to put in her car.

They were all laughing over Jeremy tying a sparkly gift ribbon in his hair when the doorbell rang. Elena shared a strange look with Dean before standing up and running to it to throw the door open. When she saw who was on the other side, her heart skipped a beat and she let out a strangled cry.

"Merry Christmas, sugarplum. Love the sweater." He said with a smirk and amused eyes.

Her hand launched out and punched him across his face.

"What the hell?" she demanded, her eyes filling with tears at the sight of Gabriel on her front porch.

"Kinda got waylaid, sweetheart. Sorry." He said, rubbing his cheek.

"You were dead." She said, her voice trembling.

"Yeah, I was. Kali was so nice to bring me back but, in case you didn't notice, I kinda gave you all of my life force. It took me a while to build it back up. I was weak for a very long ti… oof!" he was caught offguard when she flew into his arms, burying her face in his shoulder.

Dean walked to the door and looked shocked when he saw him standing there.

"Hey." Gabriel said, waving at him with difficulty as he held a sobbing Elena in his arms.

The hunter looked pissed for a second.

"Don't bother. She already got me with a right hook." He said.

Elena looked up at him with wide eyes, tears still filling them.

"Come in?" she asked.

A slow smile spreaded across his face.

"I would love nothing more." He said.

Elena looked happy as she turned to Dean. He looked like he might attack Gabriel simply for making them think that he was dead.

"He's family, Dean." she said.

"Only if he wears an ugly sweater too." Dean said conditionally.

Gabriel rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers, transforming his top to a bright green sweater with dancing red reindeer.

"Happy?" he asked.

"Very." Dean nodded, stepping aside to let him in.

He patted the angel on the shoulder in a sign of acceptance as he entered the home.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope it wasn't too disappointing. The next chapter will skip over a lot since I am going to catch up to season six. We've seen a lot of domestic and it's time to get to the action. REVIEW PLEASE!**

**The chapters are also going to be longer starting with the next chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, TheElegantFaerie, Nyssandria, MelissaIsLame, slayerdiaries, Hollywood17, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, LineChokor, Dark Alana, Deanwinchesterrocks, IgnitingFireworks, xxPaige23xx, JMHUW, imusic247, MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson, Whitlocked-kat, chiwi, CherrySin, MaddAlice, DrawingMyHeartOut, diehardromantic and the two guests for reviewing!**

**To IgnitingFireworks, that's a surprise. Not because I'm trying to be mean, but because I'm between two choices and I can't decide how to make either of them work. There's one that I want to do very badly but I'm just trying to see if I can make it work. So for now, it's a surprise.**

**To whom it may concern, for now Klaus is not planning anything. I'm trying to set him and the Originals up as allies for this part of the story and I might have gone a little over the top but for now none of them are enemies.**

**A few things**

**1. This isn't going to dive right into season 6 parts. It's going to skip over a few parts of the remainder of Elena and Dean's year without Sam. But it will get into the action.**

**2. You're all fantastic and I love you, just in case I don't tell you this enough.**

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**4. There's a shocker at the end.**

* * *

"I can't do it anymore, Elena." Dean said, looking at her as she sat on the windowseat.

He was sitting on the bed staring at her. She cocked her head to the side.

"Do what, Dean?" she said, confused and a little afraid.

"I know that I said we couldn't look and that I made a promise but… dammit I'm gonna break that promise. And we…" he said, gesturing between them. "… are gonna get Sam out of that cage."

Elena looked at him, shocked. It was only two weeks after New Year's, in which they had a big party at the boarding house, even inviting the Originals and it wasn't a total disaster. They were getting better at talking about Sam but he still wasn't a constantly talked about him. They even sat down and told Jeremy and Alaric what happened that took Sam away from them. Elena told Caroline and Bonnie the bare essentials but they still got the point that Sam sacrificed himself to save everyone. After talking about it more, the nightmares that they both experienced about it every once in a while decreased in frequency. They were getting better.

"Are you sure, Dean?" she asked, putting the book that she was reading down and leaning forward.

He nodded, looking pretty damn set on it. Elena bit her lip before nodded as well, standing up to walk to him. She pulled him into a hug, his arms wrapping around her waist and his head pressing into her stomach.

"Okay." She agreed.

* * *

"This is humiliating." Dean mumbled.

"It's called a birthday dinner, Dean. It's not like we're making you dance on tables." Elena said jokingly, messing with his hair.

"You invited everyone." He complained, gesturing to the group surrounding the large table in the Grill.

"I invited your friends. That's what they are now, your friends. We're all celebrating you, Dean. Get used to it." she said, kissing his cheek before walking to the bar.

"You ready?" Matt asked.

"Yep." She said.

"You nervous?"

"About how he's going to react about this when he's not in public? Yep. Luckily I have help in making his opinion swing towards a positive point of view on his birthday." Elena said.

"They're in the back." he said, smiling.

Caroline, Bonnie, Tyler, Alaric, Stefan, Damon, and Jeremy all walked into the kitchen to help her.

"He'd better love this." Damon said, holding the dish in his hands.

"Shut it, Damon." Elena said over her shoulder before they tromped out.

Dean watched with wide eyes as they set the eight pies on the table one after another.

"What the…" he began.

Elena grabbed his hand and forced him to stand up.

"You asked where I was yesterday, well this is where I was." she said, gesturing to the all of the pies.

He looked at her questioningly.

"Blueberry from that bed and breakfast in Montana, pecan from that tearoom in Texas, peach from that diner in Georgia that you always talk about, cherry from Nevada, blackberry from Utah, pumpkin from Idaho, strawberry rhubarb from Washington State, and last, but definitely not least, your favorite, Mary Winchester's apple pie." Elena said, gesturing at the one at a time as she walked down the table.

Dean stared at all of them with wide eyes.

"Holy… pie." He murmured.

"Pie." She nodded, grinning.

He looked at her with a huge smile.

"You got all of my favorite pies. You remembered all of my favorite pies." He breathed.

"What can I say? I had the information filed away. And I made your mom's pie at Caroline's house so that you wouldn't know." Elena said.

Dean gathered her into his arms, kissing her passionately.

"Thank you." he murmured when he pulled away.

"It's my pleasure. Now don't kill me." she said when she heard the door open and happy voices come through.

He looked past her and sighed.

"You invited my coworkers?" he asked, glancing back at her.

"Friends. And you can't eat all of this pie by yourself, so yes I did. It's a rule that you get to try each kind and the apple pie is reserved for just you. I have vanilla ice cream for it back at home so you can save it for then if you want." Elena said.

"I would like that." Dean nodded, smiling at her.

"I'll go put it back in the kitchen." Elena said, kissing his cheek and grabbing the pie to take back to the kitchen.

"Dean!" she heard several voices chorus happily.

She smiled happily, knowing it was a good idea to invite his friends from work even if he didn't think so. He needed some normal, human men his own age around him. She set the pie on the counter with a 'hands off' sign on it before walking back out. Dean's boss, the owner of the garage and Sid Fuger, was clapping Dean on the shoulder as they faced each other, both smiling.

"This must be your lovely other half. I talked to her on the phone briefly when she invited us to this shindig." The man said, reaching out to shake her hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Fuger. Dean tells me really good things about you." she said, smiling.

"Please call me Sid. And he tells me good things about you. Gets a real happy look on his face when he talks about you. Which is why I think he should go ahead and make an honest woman out of you." Sid said, smiling back at her.

Elena flushed a deep red as Dean let out an uncomfortable laugh.

"Not quite yet, buddy." He said, clapping Sid on the shoulder and turning him to face away from Elena as she pressed her lips together embarassingly.

"That's what you get for inviting him." Dean hissed.

"Shut it." she shot back, nudging him with a grin.

It wasn't five minutes before Dean was challenged to a game of pool by one of his coworkers, all wanting to see about his great ability at pool. Dean beat the guy easily as they all stood around the table.

"If you really want to see a good game, you need to watch him play Elena." Jeremy announced as Dean took fifty bucks off the guy proudly.

"No, no you guys play." She said, shaking her head and waving it off.

"You any good?" Sid asked, smiling at her.

"Eh, I'm…" Elena began to shrug off.

"She's good." Several voices chorused, including Dean's.

He was leaning on his pool cue with a smirk. His hand lifted and he crooked his finger at her in a 'come here' motion. Elena stared back at him defiantly.

"Fine." She said, starting forward.

"What are the terms?" Sid broke in, looking between them.

Elena cocked her head to the side and thought for a moment.

"If I win… you agree to watch Pride & Prejudice with me and you cook all of the meals next week." She offered.

"And if I win, you agree to read a Vonnegut book with me and you cook all of the meals next week." Dean countered.

They simply smirked at each other, Elena nibbling on her lip lightly.

"You've got a deal, Mr. Winchester." She said, holding her hand out.

They shook on it with a grin and everyone cheered around them. Even Matt walked up to watch their game.

"Damn!" Sid exclaimed once they were a few minutes into the game.

Elena was winning and had been the whole time. Dean didn't seem bothered by it, just drinking out of a beer with his smirk still firmly in place as he circled the table while she lined up her shot.

"Told you." Jeremy said in a satisfactory tone.

When Elena sunk the eight ball about ten minutes later after teasing and smack talk was going back and forth, she raised her hands in the air proudly with a squeal of happiness. Dean put his beer down and walked to her, grabbing her in a hug as he lifted her off the ground. Her legs partly wrapped around his waist.

"I will watch your stupid romantic movie with you and I will make the meals." He admitted.

Elena grinned and leaned down, kissing him.

"Dean?" she said as he let her down on his feet.

"Yeah?" he said, stroking her cheek.

"I'll still read a Vonnegut book with you." Elena said.

He grinned wider and kissed her again.

"I love you." he said.

"I love you too, birthday boy." She said happily.

* * *

When they got home, it was pretty late so Jeremy and Alaric went off to bed. Elena and Dean went to the kitchen where she uncovered the apple pie and put it in the oven to warm it up.

"Come on." she said, grabbing his hand to pull him up the stairs.

"What is it?" he asked, following willingly.

"Your birthday present." She said, smiling over her shoulder at him.

"I told you that you didn't have to get me anything." Dean sighed.

"I know." Elena said simply, opening the door and walking to the bed that had a cardboard box on it.

Dean bent down and opened it unwillingly, squinting at her. When he pulled the flaps open, his eyes widened. He pulled out the first book and stared at the cover that read _Mythology and Geology of the Underworld_.

"Happy Birthday, Dean. We're gonna get your brother out of the cage." Elena said, grinning as she put her arms around him.

The entire box was filled with other books with information on hell in them. She popped into Bobby's while he was gone and copied all of his titles before finding all of them at different bookstores around the country.

"Wow, you found all of these?" He asked, smiling at her.

"Yep. Don't get too excited, buddy. It's research time." Elena said, turning to walk downstairs.

She grabbed the pie, two bowls, the carton of ice cream, and two beers along with utensils before running back upstairs balancing everything precariously.

"Let's get on it." Elena said, sitting on the bed with everything.

* * *

"You're preening." Dean said.

"I'm not preening." Elena fired back.

"Your feathers are practically everywhere." He said, gesturing to the ground.

"Oh hush. I'm just proud of him." she said, nudging him with a grin.

"Why? Because he did what you couldn't?" Dean said teasingly.

"You didn't do it either, asshole!" Elena laughed, shoving him away.

When she saw him walking forward, she let out a cry of happiness and ran forward to hug him tightly, mindful of the cap still sitting slightly tilted on his head.

"I'm so proud of you!" she said as Jeremy hugged her back.

"It wasn't that much of an achievement, Elena. Though it is more than you ever did." He said, grinning at her.

"What is it with you boys?" she demanded, pulling back and smacking his shoulder.

"Hey!" Jeremy complained, rubbing his arm.

"Congrats on the graduation, kid." Dean said, shaking his hand.

"Thanks." The younger Gilbert said, grinning happily.

Bonnie and Caroline came skipping up with Matt and Tyler following.

"Are you actually going to come to the party instead of shutting yourselves in your room?" Jeremy asked, smirking at them.

"Of course we're going to be at your party, Jer." Elena said, grinning at him.

"What are you doing always shut up in your room" Caroline asked, amused.

Elena blushed and shook her head.

"Not that." she said in an exasperated tone.

"Maybe a little bit of that." Dean said, smirking.

Elena reached out and slapped his chest.

"No sir!" she admonished, laughing despite herself.

When they climbed into the car to go, they were alone because Jeremy was riding with Bonnie to the house. Dean sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

"What's wrong?" Elena asked, taking his hand with one hand as she drove with the other.

"We're just no closer to finding Sam than we were six months ago." he said.

"We'll get there, Dean. There has to be something. There always is, right?" she said.

"Yeah." He nodded.

"And if there's no new information by the end of the summer, we'll get in touch with Bobby, see if he has any ideas we haven't thought of yet that don't involve summoning Crowley." Elena said, rubbing his shoulders.

Dean looked over at her with a grimace.

"Do you want your pride or Sam?" she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"It's not my pride I'm worried about. It's Bobby going crazy on me. He's as much engrossed in this idea of an apple pie life for me as Sam was." he explained.

"It's either him or Gabriel and you said no angels allowed." She reminded him.

"Damn right no angels allowed. I'm not getting mixed up in their crosshairs again. Not even if it's Gabriel or Cas because where they are, the others follow." Dean said.

Elena sighed, hating that she agreed with him.

"Just cause we're doing this doesn't mean we're going to go back to hunting, right? So Bobby shouldn't have a problem with it." Elena pointed out.

"Right." Dean nodded, agreeing.

They stared at each other for a moment, contemplating.

"Right." They both said again, nodding.

* * *

"Say hi everyone!"

Elena and Dean turned along with everyone else to see Caroline holding a video camera.

"Whoa what are you doing?" Elena said, putting her hands in front of her face.

"Oh you're okay with it when you're taking pictures and stuff of the rest of us but if I'm videotaping you, you get all shy?" Caroline laughed as Dean tried to pry her hands away. "We're making memories!"

Elena finally laughed and relented, waving at the camera with a red face.

"Introduce yourselves and give a message to Jeremy. We're sending him off to college with this videotape." Bonnie said as she bounced up to them.

"Guys he's going to the same community college that you are. He's not even moving out." Dean said, laughing as well.

"We can still give him this." Caroline shrugged.

"Why do we have to introduce ourselves? Shouldn't he know his own sister?" Elena asked.

"Would you just do it?" Bonnie sighed.

"Fine. Hi it's Elena. You should really know that but I guess you could lose your memory or something. We've seen weirder things happen. I love you Jer and I hope you have a great time in college and in the rest of your life. I hope it stays normal and that you do stupid things like ride a skateboard off a roof or get drunk in Tijuana. Have a great next four years of school." She said, feeling ridiculous as she smiled into the camera.

"Dean?" Caroline said expectantly.

"Hey I'm Dean, you may know me as the guy who's with your sister. I, uh, I hope you have a good time at college and study hard, kid. We're proud of you." he said simply, not one to make embellishments when a camera was pointed at him.

A light flush of pink was on his cheeks and Elena grinned up at him, kissing his cheek.

"You're so amazing." She said, her entire face lit up with happiness.

"Eh I try." He shrugged, grinning back down at her.

* * *

"Who's idea was it to teach this kid to walk?" Dean yelled, chasing Apple as she ran across the grass in the park.

Instead of being in his layered up clothing, he was wearing jeans, a simple grey t-shirt, and his shoes were off as he ran around the soft grass.

"It just kind of happened." Elena laughed, taking a picture as he finally caught up with her, pulling her up and tossing her in the air as the little girl laughed with delight.

"Lena!" she squealed, pointing at her.

"Oh you want to go see her, huh?" he said, running towards her with Apple bouncing in his arms happily.

When they reached her, the little girl immediately held her hands out for Elena. They switched off, Elena taking Apple as Dean held the camera. She heard him taking pictures but she just focused on Apple, grinning at her.

"Spin!" the little girl commanded.

"Yes ma'am!" Elena replied before twirling around with a grin, her long hair whipping around her and Apple.

She stumbled dizzily and laughed as she looked over at Dean, who still held the camera up to take more pictures. For a moment, she could almost imagine that this was her real family with Dean and that Apple was their daughter. The thought didn't scare her. In fact, it made her even happier.

* * *

Elena sighed heavily as she looked out into the backyard of the house where Dean was raking the leaves in anticipation of the small get together they were having that evening. Summer was over and, while they knew most of the mythology and almost everything about hell, they were no closer to finding a way to get Sam out. It was nearing the middle of September and they were stalling on talking to Bobby about it. They knew he wasn't going to react well even though neither of them had talked to the older hunter in months. To be fair, it wasn't exactly their choice. He told them not to just in case someone caught wind of their location and came hunting them down. Elena wasn't even allowed to drop in with her surprise visits.

Suddenly she felt something wash over her, a feeling that someone was there. She opened the door and walked outside, causing Dean to look at her.

"You okay?" he asked, confused at her look.

"Yeah, I'm… I just felt something." She said, looking around with confusion.

"Something bad?" Dean asked, trusting her instincts.

"I don't know. Maybe I'm just tired. We didn't get much sleep last night." She said, smiling at him.

"You should go take a nap." Dean said, stroking her cheek.

"I can't, we're getting ready for tonight." Elena said, shaking her head.

"We're ready for tonight, Elena. Everything is set up except for the chairs and tables that Jeremy and Alaric are helping me with in an hour. You've made all of the food except for the stuff we have to grill. Go get some sleep. You have two hours before they show up." He said.

"Fine." Elena sighed, leaning forward and kissing him softly before walking inside.

She glanced back one more time as she could have sworn that she heard the sound of wings fluttering.

* * *

"I have more burgers." Elena said, walking up to the grill where Dean and Sid were conversing over the burgers and hot dogs that were cooking.

They were having a cookout with some of Dean's coworkers and their friends just for fun before the weather got bad. She was wearing a white sundress with a denim jacket and a scarf loosely draped over her neck. Dean was wearing jeans, boots, and a dark green long sleeved shirt with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows.

"More? God how many do we need?" Sid joked, reaching over to pat Elena's shoulder.

"You're telling me. I'm glad I had the presence of mind to buy all of these." She said, shaking her head.

Then she turned and glanced around the backyard. She still couldn't shake off the feeling that they were being watched and it creeped her out. She shook her head and walked inside the empty house, looking around.

"Gabriel? Are you here?" she called softly, not wanting to draw any attention to herself from outside.

She bit her lip. Why would Gabriel be hiding? He dropped in whenever he wanted over the past few months.

"Cas?" Elena said with uncertainty. "Are you here? Do you need help?"

Nothing happened.

"Cas if you need help, just ask. We're here." She said.

She heard the light flutter of wings and the feeling disappeared. Whoever was there before was gone now. Elena stared around with a furrowed brow before sighing heavily and walking back outside.

* * *

Elena sighed when the alarm blared through the room, making her bury her head in the pillow. She heard Dean sigh heavily and she finally lifted her head, looking at him. She put her hand on his chest and he glanced over at her.

"You okay?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah, I'm good." He nodded before leaning over to kiss her forehead.

They both sat up and Elena muttered about it being too early as she slid out of bed.

"I'm gonna go make breakfast. Remember that I'm going to get a beer with Sid tonight." Dean said, throwing on clothing.

"Yeah, I remember. Jer is sticking around the school for a party or something that Bonnie, Care, and Tyler are going to as well. I'll probably just hang around here, clean the house or do laundry." Elena nodded, stretching.

"You can come, if you want." Dean offered.

"No, you have fun with your boss. Maybe I can invite Dana for dinner." She said, remembering that Dana had gotten more and more tolerable as Apple got older.

"All right." Dean said, walking into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

* * *

"And thank God this is before Facebook, right? Because it'd be me and that goat all over the Internet." Sid laughed with Dean as he finished the story. "Don't get me wrong, right? No complaints. But if you'd have said to me, hey, you… fifteen years from now? Suburbia."

"Oh, yeah." Dean nodded, taking a swig of his beer.

"Right?" Sid said, chuckling as he shook his head.

"Believe me, I know." He said, looking around to see Matt working at the bar and Damon and Alaric sitting there drinking and talking like they did a lot.

Dean was invited to their drinking buddies party sometimes but not all the time.

"So, you've traveled around a lot, huh?" Sid asked, getting his attention back.

"Mm-hmm. Yeah, my whole life, pretty much." Dean nodded.

"And?" Sid asked, wanting details.

"I don't know." Dean shrugged, placing his beer back on the table.

"Come on. You… what, you moved in, what, about a year ago?" Sid asked.

"Yeah, thereabouts." Dean nodded.

"So I been buying you beer for a year. And I think that means you owe me a couple of gory details. Like how you managed to lure one of the precious daughters of the founding families out of Mystic Falls which never happens, by the way. You're like a god." He said, looking interested.

"Oh, no. There's not much to tell, you know? It's, uh... I lived on the road... took, uh, crap jobs that nobody else wanted." Dean said.

"Like?" Sid asked.

"Like... pest control." He said, not really lying, just not ellaborating on what kind of pests.

"Really? Pest control." Sid asked, looking a little let down.

"Yeah. You get to work with a partner. You get to help people. You have no idea what's in some people's walls. It could eat 'em alive." Dean said.

"Yeesh. And… how did you get together with Elena?" he asked.

"She was around one of the jobs I was working. We got to talking about… pest control. She was interested and we just… took off from there." Dean shrugged.

"Elena Gilbert did pest control?" Sid asked skeptically.

"She more handled the business side of things." Dean said, nodding.

"Oh, right."

"Course, that was then. And now..." Dean trailed off.

"You're practically respectable." Sid pointed out.

"Yeah. Wow." Dean sighed. "I guess so. That's kind of scary, actually."

They were interrupted by the tattooed up waitress walking to the table with the bill.

"Thanks, guys." She said, sliding a hand over Dean's arm.

"Thank you." Sid said, smiling at her as she walked off. "I think she likes you."

Dean rolled his eyes and held up the receipt with her name and phone number on it.

"You think?" he said sarcastically.

"What is it with you? Like, every time!" Sid marveled.

"It's like chicks specifically dig unavailable guys." Dean said, ripping up the receipt. "Who knew?"

* * *

"You need to keep an eye out."

Elena let out a scream of panic and whirled around to see Gabriel standing in the kitchen behind her.

"Don't sneak up on people like that!" she said, throwing a dishtowel at him.

"You're rusty. Your senses aren't as sharp as they used to be." the archangel said, leaning agaisnt the counter.

"Why do I need to keep an eye out?" Elena asked.

"I've sensed something in the town but I don't know what it is. It might be here for you and Dean. It's best if you just keep a weapon on you at all times." Gabriel explained.

"Well, they were bound to find us at some point, right?" she sighed, leaning against the sink and brushing her hair out of her face.

"Well, Cas made it pretty clear that Mystic Falls was off limits but I guess someone didn't get the message." He shrugged.

"Cas did what?" Elena asked, staring at him with shock.

"Oh yeah, sent the word out through the grapevine. Mystic Falls is a no kill zone. But sometimes things slip through the cracks." He said.

"Well I'll keep an eye out. Thanks for the warning." Elena said, rubbing her forehead.

"You all right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I just feel like… something is coming. Do you know what I mean?" Elena asked.

Gabriel sighed and nodded.

"Unfortunately I do."

* * *

"I will see you tomorrow." Sid said, waving at Dean as they walked out of the Grill.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks, man." Dean nodded, waving back as he walked to his work truck.

Suddenly heard a woman screaming from the building in front of him. He reached down and pulled his flashlight and gun out from underneath the seat, concealing the gun and walking into the deserted and broken down building that had construction stuff and caved in ceilings all over the place. He kept hearing rustling and he walked upstairs, pushing aside plastic stuff hanging from the ceiling. Finally he found a nest of birds when they all scared him and flew past him. When he walked back downstairs, he found claw marks and blood on the wall.

* * *

"And no one's called about a missing person?" he said. "No, this would have been today."

Elena watched with uncertainty as he talked to Sheriff Forbes.

"So no reports of anything around Vineland and Oak street, near that hotel renovation?" he asked.

"Okay, yeah. Thanks Sheriff. Sorry to bother you."

"Nothing?" She asked, concerned about what he saw.

She told him about Gabriel's warning and he said that he would keep an eye out as well. They both were wary of this, wondering what could possibly be going on.

"Nope. No missing persons. No one in the hospital having been attacked. Nothing." He sighed, leaning back on the couch.

"We'll figure it out, Dean. I'm certain of it." Elena said, rubbing his back.

"I just… I thought we were in a safe zone, you know? I tricked myself into thinking that we were in this bubble that no one could penetrate." Dean said.

"I know, me too." Elena said, curling up into him with her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Dean was driving down the road, his eyes sharp but his body relaxed. Then he saw clawmarks on a post on a streetcorner that matched the clawmarks he saw in the building the previous night. He quickly pulled over and shoved his gun in the back of his jeans, walking towards the post. He touched the marks before looking at the house that was standing on the corner. Slowly, he crept into the backyard to see a bunch of laundry hanging from lines. He looked at a white blouse to see that it had slashes in it, the same four marks. There was a smudge of red liquid on the shed door as well as more clawmarks. He pulled out his gun, pointing it at the door when he heard a scuffling from inside. As he neared it, the scuffling got louder.

Suddenly he ripped the door open to reveal a little dog that yipped and ran past him.

"Dean! Is that a gun?" He whirled around to see Sid in exercise clothes pulling headphones out of his ears.

"No, no." he said, shoving it back n his jeans. "Yeah. Well, it's… I got a permit for it."

"What, to shoot the Glickmans' dog?" Sid asked.

"I thought that was a possum. Remember when I said I was in pest control? Well, possums carry rabies, so..." he imitated shooting a gun into the shed.

"I did not know that." Sid breathed, his eyes wide.

"Oh, yeah. Yeah. Possums… possums kill, Sid." He nodded, glancing back at the shed when he noticed something, bending down.

"Oh, crap." He muttered.

"What's that?" Sid asked as he touched the foul smelling stuff.

"Sulfur." He muttered. "I got to go."

"Hold on, Dean! What the hell?"

Dean ignored him, running to his truck and jumping in, speeding back to the house.

* * *

"Yeah, I'll see what's going on with him. Thanks, Sid." Elena said before hanging up the phone.

She looked out to see the truck sitting on the side of the road outside of the house but Dean wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Come on, little one." She said, picking up Apple to carry her outside.

After hearing rustling, she walked to the garage to see Dean replacing the cover on the back of the Impala.

"So, Sid just called. Did you almost shoot a Yorkie?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

Dean looked guilty as he picked up the bag he had on the ground and placed it on the covered car.

"Technically." He said.

"What's going on? Did you find anything? Did something attack you." she asked.

"No. I just… I, uh, I-I got this… I don't know, spidey sense." He stammered out.

"What did you find?"

"Nothing really but just to be sure, how about you take Apple to the Grill or something? Just to be safe." He said.

Elena sighed.

"I should really be here in case something happens." She said.

"Please, anyways you'll feel it if something bad happens." Dean said, walking forward to take her hand.

"Okay, but you bet your ass I'll be back at the first sign of trouble." Elena said with narrowed eyes.

"I know." He said, leaning forward and kissing her before ruffling Apple's hair.

Elena turned to walk out and Dean looked around the garage with a suspicious gaze. When he heard a rustling in the corner, his body tensed up and the light suddenly flickered overhead. He launched forward and grabbed the shotgun out of the bag. Then he heard another noise and peeked around the Impala where it came from. There was nothing there. But when he turned around, he was faced with someone he hadn't seen in a very long time.

"Hiya, Dean." Azazel said, grinning.

Dean froze up, staring at him with wide eyes and a clenched jaw. "Look what the apocalypse shook loose. You have fun sniffing that trail? Cause I sure had fun patting you around."

"You can't be..." he hissed.

"Oh, sure I can!" Azazel said happily.

"No." he growled, shaking his head as Azazel backed him towards the Impala.

"Yeah, kiddo. The big daddy brought your pal Cas back, right? So why not me? Add a little spice to all that… that sugar.

Suddenly Dean pulled the trigger and the shot shattered through the air as it hit the yellow eyed demon's chest.

* * *

Elena's head snapped up from where she was buckling Apple into the carseat. Mr. Carson heard as well where he was picking his newspaper up.

"Did you hear that, Elena?" he asked, walking towards her.

"Yeah, I did Mr. Carson. Can you watch Apple for a second?" she said, turning to run into the house.

"Elena! You shouldn't go in there! It was a gunshot!" he yelled but he had no choice but to stay behind with the baby.

She ripped through the closet, finding a shotgun and then she grabbed her dagger out of her purse that was sitting on the stairs.

* * *

"Really? After all we've been through together?" Azazel said, grinning tauntingly.

"You know, you got a great little life here. Pretty Lady… real understanding. Hell of a family. And how do you keep your lawn so green?"

Dean glared at him as the gun smacked out of his hands by the demon.

"I mean, come on, Dean. You never been what I'd call brainy, but did you really think you were gonna get to keep all of this? You had to know that we were coming for you sometime, pal. You can't outrun your past." He taunted.

His hands raised and he began to strangle Dean, leaving the hunter unable to struggle as he wasn't strong enough. Just as he was about to pass out, someone came out of nowhere and slammed a needle into his heart, pressing the plunger down.

* * *

Elena ran around the corner just in time to hear a sharp cry and a body thump to the ground. She threw the door open and let out a scream of panic when she saw who was standing over Dean.

"Oh my God!"

The gun clattered to the ground as she stared at him in shock, her heart pounding dangerously. He turned and looked at her, a slight smile on his face.

"Hey Lena." He said.

"Sam?" she whispered.

"Yeah, it's me." he nodded.

Her eyes flashed to Dean, unsure of why he was on the ground unconscious.

"He was poisoned, by a djinn. He was hallucinating. That's why he shot the gun." Sam explained.

Elena nodded and looked back at him.

"You're… you're human. You're not a demon. Not a shapeshifter. I'd be able to sense it." she stammered out.

"I'm me, Sam Winchester." He said definitively.

"But… how?" she mumbled.

"How about we get Dean out of here and to a safe place? I'll explain everything to both of you." Sam offered.

Elena nodded, walking forward. Then she looked up at him.

"Are you… are you okay, Sam?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm good." He nodded.

Elena bit her lip and inhaled sharply.

"You're really here." She said hesitantly, reaching out to touch his chest.

He didn't say anything, watching her. She suddenly threw her arms around him, smiling through the tears that built in her eyes.

"I can't believe you're here." She said, feeling his familiar warmth.

Sam hugged her back.

"You're not the only one." He agreed.

"I just… I have to go drop someone off. Where are you taking Dean?" Elena asked.

Sam explained to her where they would be and she nodded to acknowledge that she knew the place. First she had to take Apple to Dana's workplace because she wasn't going to bring the baby around with this stuff going on. When she ran into the shop, Dana looked surprised.

"I'm sorry, Dana. Something came up, an emergency." Elena said, looking panicked as she handed over the baby and the diaper bag.

"Oh, is everything all right?" Dana asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I think it'll be fine but I just can't watch her. I'm sorry." Elena said.

"It's all right, go take care of whatever you need to take care of." Dana nodded.

* * *

Elena looked up as she approached the old, broken down home, unsure of why she was there. When she opened the door, she was immediately faced with the barrel of a gun.

"What the hell?" she snapped, seeing a woman on the other end of it with dark hair and steely eyes.

"Who are you?" the woman demanded.

"Elena Gilbert, who are you?" she shot back.

"Gwen Campbell, nice to meet you, Elena. I've heard a lot about you." she said, dropping the gun and reaching out to shake her hand.

"Um… wait… Campbell?" she said, shaking her hand.

"Yep, Campbell. Come meet the rest of the family." She said, turning to walk into another room.

"Family?" Elena questioned, confused.

* * *

Dean groaned as he woke up slowly, his vision blurred when someone sitting down came into view. It took him a second to realize that the person was too familiar.

"Hey, Dean." Sam said as Dean sat up, rubbing his head. "I was expecting, uh... I don't know, a hug, some holy water in the face… something."

"So I'm dead? This is Heaven? Yellow Eyes killed me, and now…" Dean said hoarsely, his throat hurting.

"Yellow Eyes? That's what you saw?" Sam asked, looking surprised.

"Saw?" Dean asked, confused.

"You were poisoned. So whatever kind of crazy crap you think you been seeing, it's not real." Sam assured him.

Dean stared at him for a moment.

"So, then, are you... real? Or… or am I still…"

"I'm real. Here, let me save you the trouble." He stood and cut himself with a silver blade.

"All me." he said.

Then he put salt into a jug of water and drank a few gulps of it.

"That's nasty." He grumbled, putting it on the table.

"Sammy?" Dean said with wide eyes, standing slowly as it finally occurred to him what was happening.

"Yeah. It's me." Sam said, smiling.

Dean suddenly launched forward and grabbed him into a hug, thumping his back. Sam did the same, relaxing in his brother's arms.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute. You… you… you were… you were gone, man. I mean, that… that was it. How the hell are you…" Dean stammered his way through the sentence.

"I don't know." Sam said, shrugging.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Dean asked suspiciously.

"I mean, no idea. I… I'm just back." he said simply.

"Well, was it God, or… or Cas? I mean, does Cas know anything about it?"

"You tell me. I've been calling. Cas hasn't answered my prayers. I don't even know where he is. I mean, I was... down there, and then, next minute, it's raining, and I'm lying in that field, alone. It's kind of hard to go looking for whatever saved you when you got no leads. But I looked. I mean, believe me, I looked... for weeks." Sam explained.

Dean nodded before realizing what he said.

"Wait, weeks? How long you been back?" Dean asked, his voice filled with emotion.

Sam remained silent, staring at him.

"How long you been back, Sam?" he demanded a little rougher this time.

"About a year." Sam admitted.

"About a year?" Dean yelled, suddenly pissed.

"Dean…" he sighed.

"You been back practically this whole time?! What, did you lose the ability to send a friggin' text message?!" he interrupted him.

"You finally had what you wanted, Dean." Sam defended his actions.

"I wanted my brother, alive!" Dean shot back.

"You wanted a family. You have for a long time, maybe the whole time. I know you. You only gave it up because of the way we lived. But you had something, and you were building something. Had I shown up, Dean, you would have just run off. I'm sorry. But it felt like after everything, you deserve some regular life." Sam said.

"What have you been doing?" Dean asked after a moment of silence.

"Hunting." Sam said.

"You left me alone, and you were flying solo?" Dean snapped.

"Not solo." Sam said, shaking his head.

"What?" Dean said, confused.

"I hooked up with some other people." Sam explained.

"You? Working with strangers?"

"They're more like family. And they're here." Sam said hesitantly.

* * *

Elena shifted uncomfortably as she sat in a chair with everyone looking at her. She felt like everyone was judging her simply for being there but Sam insisted that she stay. That wasn't a problem considering that she wasn't about to leave Dean behind but the abandoned and broken down house that they were in on the edge of town made her antsy. When she heard yelling, she knew that Dean had woken up. After a few minutes, the door opened and Sam and Dean walked in. Elena was visibly relieved to see that he was all right.

"Hey." The only other female in the room said as she walked up to Dean, looking up at him.

"Hi." Dean said, unsure of who she was.

"My God, you have delicate features for a hunter." She breathed, making Elena smirk.

"Excuse me?" Dean asked, his brow furrowing.

"Dean, Gwen Campbell." Sam introduced them.

"Good to finally meet you." Gwen said, shaking his hand. "Sam's gone on and on."

"And this is Christian... and Mark. Campbell." He said, gesturing to the two men.

"Hi." Christian said where he was loading a gun.

Elena stood, walking away to Dean.

"Cam… Campbell? Like..." Dean stammered out.

"Like your mom." Christian confirmed.

"Third cousin. Third cousin." Sam said, pointing to Gwen and Christian.

"Something, something twice removed." He explained, pointing to Mark. "They grew up in the life, like Mom and like us."

"You okay?" Dean asked, looking at her.

"Just a little shocked." She admitted, her body tensed up.

"I thought all of Mom's relatives were gone. And I'm sorry. It's just, you know, why didn't we know about any of you?" Dean said, looking around confusedly.

"Cause they didn't know about you. Not until I brought you all together." Their heads all snapped to see someone else walk in.

Elena's jaw dropped as she hadn't seen this particular Campbell yet.

"Samuel?" Dean said, shocked as he looked upon his own grandfather.

The man walked forward and gave him a hug before pulling away.

"Guys, give me a second with my grandsons here, please." Samuel said, looking at the other three.

He didn't look surprised when Elena didn't move a muscle as Mark, Christian, and Gwen left.

"Lot of resurrections in your face today. It's all right. Take a minute." Samuel nodded, staring between Elena and Dean's shocked looks.

"It's gonna take a little more than a minute. I mean, what the hell? H… how did this happen?" Dean said, taking Elena's hand.

"We're guessing whatever pulled Sam up pulled me down. So, whatever this is, we're both a part of it." Samuel explained.

"But you don't know what that is." Elena guessed.

"Bingo." He nodded.

"And you have no leads? Nothing? Well, this… this is, uh... no more doornails coming out of that door, is there?" Dean asked with uncertainty.

"As far as we know, it's Samuel, and it's me." Sam said.

"Okay, am I the only one here that… that… that thinks that this can't all just be fine?" Dean questioned, looking around.

"Believe me, you're not. I wanted to come get you, of course. Sam was adamant about leaving you out, so we did. Until this." Samuel said.

"Right. So, then you ended up in my garage how?" Dean asked, as they all moved to sit down, Elena and Dean on a couch next to each other.

"I got hit before you did, few days ago. Dosed up with poison." Sam said.

"By?" Dean said.

"Couple of djinn." Samuel answered.

"Djinn? I thought those were… were cave-dwelling hermit-type. That's pretty exotic." Dean said, confused as he looked between the other two hunters.

"Not anymore, at least. These... look like regular people. They can blend in. And all they got to do to kill you is touch you. Their toxins get in your system, all of a sudden you're hallucinating your worst nightmares, and pretty soon you O.D." Sam explained.

"Well, then how are you alive?" Elena asked curiously, looking at Sam.

"Samuel had a cure." He answered.

"You got a cure for djinn poison?" Dean asked, his eyebrow raising.

"Oh, I know a few things. Stick around, I'll show you tricks your daddy never even dreamed of." Samuel said with a smirk.

"Uh... Okay, why are these things after us?" Dean asked.

"Well, you did stake one a while back." Samuel pointed out.

"After they came after me, we were pretty certain that they were gonna go gunning for you next." Sam said.

Suddenly Elena remembered something. If they were after Dean, they would probably know where he lived.

"Dean, Jeremy is coming home early today." She said, gripping his arm. "If that thing comes back…"

"It's all right. I already sent someone over there to watch 'em." Samuel assured them.

"We gotta get home right now." Dean said, jumping up.

Elena followed him, pulling her keys out of her pocket. Sam and Samuel followed them but they were already jumping in her car and speeding off. When they arrived at the house, they both saw that the door was sitting wide open.

"Jer!" Elena yelled as she ran in, her heart thundering in her chest with her dagger gripped tightly in her hand.

"Jeremy!" Dean shouted.

Elena pulled out her phone and dialed her brother's number. It just kept ringing with no answer.

"Come on, Jer." She whispered as Dean ran around the house looking for him.

"Elena?" She turned suddenly to see Jeremy walking in with a confused look.

"Where the hell have you been?" she demanded, launching forward and hugging him tightly.

"I was heading home from school. You know that." he said, hugging her back as Dean ran into the room.

"Elena, ow." Sam choked out as she squeezed him too tightly.

"What happened?" Jeremy asked, looking between them.

"Go upstairs and pack a bag." Dean said.

"What's going on?" he asked, confused.

"There's something hanging around the house trying to kill Dean but it'll go after anything. We have to get you away." Elena said.

"Where am I gonna go?" Jeremy asked, looking at her and Dean alternately.

"The boarding house?" Elena asked, looking at Dean.

"Not enough. These things are powerful." Dean said.

"Well… we'll figure something out. Just…"

"Oh my God." Jeremy interrupted her, looking past them with wide eyes.

They all turned to see Sam standing there.

"Yeah, there's that too." Elena said, sighing.

* * *

After gathering up the rest of their friends, they ended up in the one place they never thought they'd go to for a favor. Elena hesitantly reached out and knocked on the door. It opened to reveal Rebekah of all people.

"What do you want?" she said, staring at all of them.

"Is Elijah or Klaus here?" Elena asked, not wanting to deal with the blonde who seemed to hate her for no reason.

"Possibly. Why would it matter to you?" Rebekah said, giving her a glare.

"I need to speak to one of them." Elena fired back.

"Rebekah, I will speak to them." A newcomer said, appearing in the door before the blonde Original could slam it in their faces.

She rolled her eyes and disappeared.

"What is it, Elena?" Elijah asked.

"I need your help. There's something hanging around this town and we don't know how long they've been watching us. They could know about everyone in our lives so we need a safe place for them to hang out until we figure out how to get rid of them. Can they stay here?" Elena asked, looking up at him.

Elijah's eyes scanned over Bonnie, Jeremy, Caroline, Tyler, Matt, Alaric, Damon, and Stefan. Damon had been resistant to the idea but when he was informed that the djinn were above even his paygrade, he finally relented.

"We would be glad to help you." he said, stepping aside.

"Thank you, Elijah." She sighed with relief.

"Just stay here, okay? Don't go anywhere. If you need anything, ask one of them for it." Dean instructed.

"House arrest, great." Damon snapped.

"Don't be an asshole, Damon." Elena said, rolling her eyes.

Then she looked up at Elijah.

"Thanks again." She said.

"It is our pleasure to help you." he nodded.

* * *

Elena twisted her hands together as they walked up the steps to Bobby's house to see if he had any information on how to track a djinn. Dean reached out and knocked on it as Sam stood just out of the sight of the door. It opened to reveal the older hunter looking between Elena and Dean.

"Damn it." he grumbled.

They both looked at him with matching confused looks.

"It's good to see you, too, Bobby. It's been a while." Dean said.

"If you're here, something's wrong." He sighed, stepping to the side for them to walk in.

They looked back as Sam rounded the corner and stood in the doorway.

"Hey, Bobby." He said softly.

They looked back at Bobby, not knowing what to expect of the hunter's reaction. They didn't except for nothing to happen.

"Sam." he nodded.

"You knew?" Elena demanded.

"You knew Sam was alive." Dean snapped, angry.

"Yeah." Bobby said, nodding.

"How long?" Dean demanded.

"Look…" Bobby began.

"How long?!" Dean said in a louder voice.

"All year." He finally said.

Elena and Dean stared at him.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Bobby you saw us at Christmas. You saw me before Christmas. You knew we were…" Elena demanded as they followed him into the study.

"I'd do it again." Bobby threw over his shoulder.

"Why?!" Dean yelled.

"Because you got out, Dean! You walked away from the life. And I was so damn grateful, you got no idea." Bobby said, rounding on them.

"Do you have any clue what walking away meant for me?" Dean yelled as Elena simply stared at Bobby with a betrayed look on her face.

"Yeah… a woman and a family and not getting your guts ripped out at age 30. That's what it meant." Bobby growled.

"I went to Mystic Falls because you asked me to." Dean snapped, pointing at Sam.

"Good." Bobby cut in.

"Good for who? I showed up on her doorstep half out of my head with grief. We both mourned. We both had nightmares." Dean listed off. "We looked everywhere. We collected hundreds of books, trying to find anything to bust you out."

"You promised you'd leave it alone." Sam said, looking between them.

"Of course I didn't leave it alone! Sue me! A damn year? You couldn't put us out of our misery?" the older Winchester bellowed.

"Look, I get it wasn't easy. But that's life! And it's as close to happiness as I've ever seen a hunter get. It ain't like I wanted to lie to you, son. But you were out, Dean." Bobby said.

Elena shook her head and ran her fingers through her hair frustratedly. Everything was so messed up.

"Do I look out to you?" Dean said.

* * *

Elena and Dean stood in the hallway upstairs while Sam and Bobby discussed things downstairs.

"I'm so sorry, Elena." he sighed, leaning against the wall with his head thrown back.

"For what?" she asked, taking his hand.

"Those things were coming for me. And I should've known." He said, shaking his head.

"Dean, how could you know a monster was gonna show up? We had nothing happen for a year."

"I should've known. I should've known that if I stayed with you that something would come, because something always does. But I was stupid and reckless and... you can't outrun your past." He said.

"You weren't trying to outrun it, Dean. You were trying to put it behind you. There's a difference. And this is not your fault, okay? We'll figure it out and everything will be fine, all right?" Elena said.

"But what happens after we figure it out?" he asked, looking at her.

"I… I don't know." She admitted. "We can't concentrate on that. We just have to get back to Mystic Falls and kill this thing."

* * *

"What's the plan?" Dean asked as they walked into the broken down home.

"Well, right now, we stock up, get set." Christian said where he was sitting and cleaning a gun.

"So you're saying there is no plan." Dean said, raising an eyebrow at the other hunter.

"We'll find 'em. Just got to be patient." Christian shrugged.

"Yeah, okay. Oh, here's an idea. Why don't we go kill the sons of bitches that broke into my home?" Dean growled.

"Relax, Dean. We got it handled. Djinn are hard to draw out. Now, you've been out of the game for a while. Leave it to the professionals." Christian said, standing and patting his shoulder.

Elena could feel the tension rolling off his shoulders.

"Yeah. Sure." Dean nodded, surprising her with his complacency as he turned away.

Then he turned back and a smirk formed on her face as she could see where this was going.

"Tiny suggestion. You see, djinn are easier to draw out when you got bait. They want Sam and me. They know where I live. Now, I haven't been hunting in a while, but I'm gonna stick my neck out and guess that's a pretty good place for us to go." he said.

Samuel looked at him with an impressed look as Sam smirked along with Elena.

"See? It's almost like I'm a professional." Dean said, smirking at Christian.

* * *

Elena sighed heavily as they all walked into their empty house. They immediately began setting up on the dining room table.

"Huh, I love this one. Yours or, uh, your wife's?" Gwen asked Dean, picking up the InStyle magazine that Caroline left behind.

Elena walked up and snatched it out of her hands, finding the snarky sarcastic attitude much more endearing in Dean and Sam and not quite so much in the others.

Mark reached down and picked up a picture of him and Elena at their Christmas party.

"Hey. Do me a favor… don't touch that." Dean said, wrenching it out of his grip and putting it back.

"Golf? Really?" Sam asked, opening the coat closet and pointing to the clubs.

"Those are Ric's, could you stop?" Elena snapped, closing the door and squinting up at him.

* * *

"Nice house." Samuel said as Dean walked into the kitchen.

Elena was working on keeping everyone confined to the dining room and the entryway.

"Oh, yeah." Dean scoffed. "Go ahead, say it… call me a soccer mom. Whatever."

""Soccer mom, huh? Well, I'll have to look that up on the intranet." Samuel said with amusement. "You know, believe it or not, I... I get it, Dean. You wanted a normal life. Your mom wanted a normal life, too. You remind me of her, actually. The attitude, for one thing. Your brother tell you what we been dealing with the past few months?"

"No, not really." Dean said, leaning against the counter.

"I've never seen anything quite like it. Been working 'round the clock." Samuel said.

"So what's going on?" he asked.

"We don't know. But whatever it is, it goes way past a couple of djinn acting off. Nocturnals attacking in broad daylight, werewolves out on the half-moon, creatures that we've never even seen before. We don't… we don't even know what they are. I'm knee-deep in half-eaten human hearts and exsanguinated 10-year-olds, and it's all making me... uneasy." Samuel explained.

"So what's your theory?" Dean asked.

"You tell me. All we really know is it's all hands on deck. We're counting on each other right now. That's how it is with Campbells. We need you, Dean." He said.

"Look, I hear you, but..." Dean began.

"You don't know what you're part of, Dean." Samuel interrupted him. "You know, you had ancestors hacking the heads off vamps on the Mayflower. What I'm saying is that we're your blood. And we're out there dying, trying to get in front of whatever this is. Maybe not the best time for golf."

Elena walked in, cutting them off.

"I'm gonna go check on Jeremy and everyone else. I just have this feeling." She said.

"Oh yeah? And what is that?" Christian said skeptically, walking in.

Dean stared at them.

"Sam didn't tell you." he guessed.

"Tell us?" Samuel asked.

Elena rolled her eyes before looking back at Dean.

"I'll be right back. I'll leave you to explain." She said before grabbing her dagger off of the counter and closing her eyes.

Christian and Samuel watched with shock when she disappeared.

"Oh yeah, we have a guardian angel, by the way. Well she's not fully an angel but she's got their mojo in her." Dean said, glad to be able to one up his jackass of a third cousin once again.

* * *

Elena looked around once she landed on the lawn of the Originals' manor. The door opened to reveal Kol walking out.

"You figure out what's hunting you?" he asked, descending the stairs.

"Yeah, it's a djinn. Or a couple of them." She said, walking backwards as she scanned the darkness.

"Oh nasty things. Need help?" Kol asked.

"No, I think we got it. How is everything here?" she asked, facing the vampire.

"Peaceful as can be." he said, shrugging. "Well, minus the whiny elder Salvatore."

"Yeah, sorry for that one." She said, her body still on alert.

* * *

"Hey. You don't really say much, do you?" Dean asked as he walked outside to where Mark was keeping watch in a truck.

"Enough." the other hunter said gruffly.

"Any sign of 'em?" Dean asked after a moment of silence.

"Three djinn off in the trees." Mark answered, handing Dean his binoculars. "Here."

Dean peered through them and saw exactly what Mark was talking about. He glanced back at him as he handed him the equipment back.

"Thanks." He said before turning back to the house.

"Those djinn are just sitting out there, watching us. Everybody's got to clear out." he said as he walked in.

"What?" Christian said, looking up at him.

"They're not gonna come in here until me and Sam are alone." Dean explained.

"So, what, I'm supposed to leave you here with no backup?" Samuel scoffed.

"Dean's right. They're smart. They'd wait till they weren't outnumbered." Sam nodded.

Samuel looked between them before sighing.

"All right, we won't be far. You call when they come, you hear?" Dean and Sam nodded. "All right, pack up. We're out of here." Samuel said.

* * *

"You okay?" Sam asked as they stood in the kitchen.

"Oh, yeah." Dean nodded, rolling his eyes sarcastically.

"Yeah?" Sam said.

"No, this is... This is crazy. I mean, you, Grandpa. Whoever brought you back..." Dean began.

"They don't want to be found." Sam finished.

"Yeah, I get that. But who are they, and what do they… what do they want? Why?" Dean said.

"That's a good question." Sam shrugged, not having an answer.

Dean glanced over at him, looking him up and down.

"Do you remember it?" he asked.

"What?" Sam said.

"The Cage." Dean said.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"You want to…"

"No." the younger brother cut him off.

"Well, if anybody can relate..." Dean said.

"Dean, I don't want to talk about it. I'm back. I get to breathe fresh air, have a beer, hunt with my family, see you and Elena again. So why exactly would I want to think about Hell?" Sam asked.

"And you really think..." Dean scoffed before looking out the window to the backyard through the living room.

Sid was there with one of the djinn touching him. Sam looked to see what Dean was looking at. In the next second, Dean lunged forward to run back there.

"Dean, he's already dead, and you know it." Sam said, catching his shoulder.

"This is happening because of me!" Dean yelled, throwing his hand off and grabbing one of the remedies.

"Dean!" Sam called as he ran outside.

"Sid." Dean said, kneeling by his side.

His eyes were completely white and he had no pulse. Suddenly Dean was tackled away and ripped up to face the waitress from the Grill with the tattoos. He dropped the antidote on the ground and she crushed it with her heel.

"You made it through that last trip, so how about a big, fat double dose? Bad news… it'll kill you. The good news? At least you'll go fast." She said, smirking as she put her hand on his face.

He choked and sputtered as he felt ice cold venom moving through his veins.

"That's for our father, you son of a bitch." She snapped.

* * *

Elena's head snapped up as she concluded her search of the perimeter of the house with Kol.

"What is it? Is there someone here?" he asked.

"No, they're in danger." Elena said, slipping back into guardian mode easier than she thought she would.

"Who?" he asked.

"My boys." She said simply before disappearing.

* * *

Dean grunted as his eyes opened. He was laying on the bed in Elena's room. He was suddenly yanked up to lean against the backboard. Azazel was standing in the doorway holding Elena, who was in a white nightdress.

"There, there, kiddo." He said, pointing at Dean.

"You stay away from her! Elena!" he growled out, trying to move but unsuccessful.

The yellow eyed demon suddenly threw her against the wall.

"Now you're going to know how Sammy felt when his pretty little woman died the same way as his precious mommy." He said.

"No!" Dean yelled as Elena sobbed and tried to struggle away from his hold.

"It's all your fault." Azazel said, smirking.

"Elena!" Dean cried, tears filling his eyes as she was dragged up the wall and onto the ceiling.

"Your fault. Can't stop it." the demon taunted.

Elena screamed loudly as she burned on the ceiling.

"No!" Dean yelled brokenly.

* * *

Elena arrived in the house just in time to see a djinn attack Sam. She ran forward and ripped the woman off of him, throwing her into the wall. Samuel ran in with a stake.

"I've got this. You two go get Dean." Samuel said.

"Where is he?" Elena asked.

"Back yard." Sam said, directing her.

She ran out to see Dean writhing on the ground yelling out her name.

"Dean!" she fell to her knees next to him and realized that he was hallucinating.

Elena placed her hands on Dean's chest. It had been forever since she had to heal someone. The warmth flowed through her body as if it was waiting to be awakened once again. It flowed out of her fingers and into Dean's body easily and she could feel him healing underneath her.

"Is he good?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, he's fine." She breathed with a sigh of relief.

* * *

Samuel got the girl with a stake in her stomach before Christian and Mark ran in, throwing a bag over her entire torso and tightening it.

"Relax, hon. We're not gonna kill you." Samuel said, putting a sedative in her arm.

"Get her in the van. Quick, now, before the boys get back." he said.

"Come on. Come on." Christian said as he and Mark ran out with the djinn.

* * *

Elena sighed as she sat on the table in front of the couch.

"You took care of it?" Gabriel asked.

"Yeah." Elena nodded.

"Djinn, huh? Sneaky little bastards." He muttered.

"Gabriel do you know how this happened?" she asked, referring to Sam.

"Wish I did, kiddo. I'm still kind of cut off from everything heaven, by choice, but still." He said.

Elena sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. Suddenly Sid inhaled deeply and sat up on the couch.

"Hey, Sid it's okay." She said.

"What the hell? I saw this… man. He was covered in tattoos. I think, I think he killed me." he said, staring at Elena with wide eyes.

"Of course he killed you. This one right here brought you back, buck-o." Gabriel said, patting Elena's shoulder.

She turned to glare at him.

"What? You did." She continued to glare. "Oh calm yourself. I'm about to erase his memory anyways." Gabriel said, walking forward.

"You're going to… what?" Sid asked, shocked.

"Just relax, won't hurt a bit." The archangel said, pressing his fingers to the man's forehead.

Elena watched as he blinked a few times and looked at her.

"Elena? What's going on?" he asked.

"You came over her to check on Dean, Sid. You fell and hit your head. I think you probably have low blood sugar. Let me get you something to eat." She said, standing up and walking into the kitchen with Gabriel following her.

"You'll keep your ears open? See if you hear anything about Sam or the Campbells?" she asked, pulling some crackers out of the cabinet.

"Of course. But what are you and Dean doing? Are you going to hunt again?" Gabriel asked.

Elena looked down at her hands, biting her lip.

* * *

"So, Samuel and the cuzzes?" Dean asked as he and Sam stood on the lawn.

"Don't know. They left in a hurry. I'm meeting them back at their place." Sam said. "You, uh, you coming with me?"

"No. No, I'm gonna stay here." Dean said.

"I thought you said…"

"I did. I changed my mind." He cut him off.

"Look, I practically shoved you at this life." Sam sighed.

"That's a funny way to put it, but all right." Dean allowed.

"I'm just saying, I really wanted that for you. And when I told you to go, I thought... you could have it, you know? But now I'm not so sure. I mean, you got to consider the fact that you'll be putting Elena's family and friends in danger if you two stay.

"So, what, it's better to leave them alone, unprotected, and then they're not in danger? I did this to them. I made them vulnerable the moment I came to live here, and I can't undo that. But what I can do is go with the best option." Dean said.

"I hear you. I guess I just, wish you were coming, that's all." Sam sighed.

"Why?" Dean scoffed.

"Don't be stupid." Sam said, shaking his head.

"No, I mean it. I mean, you know plenty of good hunters. I'm rusty. I did something seriously stupid going out there. I almost got us both killed." Dean said with a grimace.

"And that's exactly why I want you." Sam nodded.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, confused.

"You just went. You didn't hesitate. Because you care, and that's who you are. Me? I wouldn't even think to try." Sam explained.

"Yes, you would." Dean said confidently, wondering why Sam was saying this.

"No, Dean. I'm telling you, it's just better with you around. That's all." He said desperately.

"Listen..." Dean sighed after a moment.

He pulled the keys to the Impala out of his pocket and held them out to him.

"She should be hunting. Take her." he said.

"Thanks. Really. But I already got my car set up how I like it." Sam said, shaking his head as he stepped away. "I should hit the road."

"Keep in touch, you hear?" Dean said.

"Course. It was really good to see you again, Dean. You and Elena." Sam said.

Just as he finished saying it, Elena stepped out of the house. She remained on the porch as he backed away towards his car. She waved at him, a sad look on her face, as he climbed in the car. He waved back, nodding before he drove away.

* * *

"Sid's all right?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, he's fine." Elena said as they both lay in the bed.

Everyone was back in their homes and it was nighttime so Jeremy and Alaric were in bed. Elena looked over at Dean.

"Are you sure, about staying here?" she asked.

"We said we wouldn't go running back to hunting, Elena. We've got a life here. I don't want to just run out on that." Dean said, stroking her leg that was nestled against his.

"All right." she said, curling up into his side.

After the taxing day, both of them fell asleep rather quickly.

* * *

_She was staring down into a deep black hole. She had no idea where she was but all she could concentrate on was the hole. There were whispers coming out of it._

"_We're coming." they said._

"_Hello?" Elena called, her voice echoing._

"_We're coming." The voice whispered again, this time it was louder._

"_Who are you?" she yelled._

"_The Guardian will fall!"_

* * *

Elena sat up, breathing heavily as she jerked out of her dream. She sighed and looked over at Dean, who was still sleeping. After sitting there for a few moments, she figured out that she was thirsty. She slid out of the bed and walked out of her room and down the stairs softly. When she got to the kitchen, she filled a glass with water and filled it with water, taking a drink out of it.

"Hello, Elena."

She gasped and whirled around, her eyes wide. The glass slipped out of her hand when she saw the beautiful blonde girl perched on the counter, her long legs dangling off.

"Oh my God."

* * *

**Author's Note: I think I've embraced my evilness with these cliffhangers. I know they're not fun for you but it brings a certain thrill to an author. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Don't worry! Everyone comes together again! Please review!**

**A few things:**

**1. I already know how this story is going to end. I have the entire final chapter planned out both in my head and on paper and I have basic outlines for the next three parts in this story. Don't worry; it's not a sad depressing ending. I'm not that kind of author, I like semi-nice happy-ish endings.**

**2. On that note, if there is anything you want to see happen, anything at all, tell me. If I can find a way for it to fit in with my plan for this story, I will definitely put it in. But if it goes against my final plan I'm afraid that I won't be able to put it in. It's not that I don't appreciate the ideas and they might give me another idea that's similar but I don't want to change my vision for this story.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to JMHUW, imusic247, diehardromantic, RHatch89, Dark Alana, Nyssandria, Whitlocked-kat, MaddAlice, MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson, slayerdiaries, chiwi, Deanwinchesterrocks, IgnitingFireworks, CherrySin, xxPaige23xx, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, LineChokor, and the guest for reviewing and to everyone else for reading! You're all the best!**

**Congratulations to Dark-Supernatural-Angel, you were the only one who guessed right about who the mystery girl was.**

**To Whitlocked-kat, I am doing the French Mistake episode with my own little twist. :)**

**To MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson, I tried to incorporate your idea into this chapter. Let me know how I did.**

**A few things:**

**1. After thinking long and hard about it, I've decided to make this part much more twisted than the original season 6 was. I don't mean twisted as in dark even though there will be a lot of that too. I mean that I'm going to keep up the theme of 'we don't know who our ally is and who our enemy' that is sort of a part of season six but I'm taking it and running with it. There will be a lot of second-guessing of everyone, especially from Elena because she is literally going to be pulled in several different directions from several different people. So be prepared for that.**

**2. I'm most likely skipping the 'Weekend at Bobby's' episode so I just wanted to warn you about that.**

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

"This isn't possible." Elena murmured, shaking her head.

"Of course it is. You got any food? I'm starving." The girl said, hopping off of the counter.

"How…" Elena began.

"I don't know."

"But you're… you're dead. You've been dead for years. How am I seeing you now?" Elena asked.

The girl smiled and flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder before holding a hand out.

"I never introduced myself. That's so rude. I'm Jess." She said.

Elena hesitantly reached out and grasped her hand, shaking it.

"Elena." she said simply.

"Oh I know exactly who you are. I've been watching. We all have." She said, opening the fridge and peering into it.

"Are you a ghost?" Elena asked, looking at the cabinet where the salt was.

"Not particularly." Jess said.

"Demon?"

"No." the blonde laughed, pulling out a yogurt cup and pulling it open.

"Shapeshifter?" Elena said.

"Trust me, Elena, you aren't going to figure it out." Jess said, walking to a drawer and opening it to pull out a spoon.

She hopped up onto the counter again and began eating.

"Then why shouldn't I be killing you?" Elena asked.

"Because you can't." Jess shrugged.

Elena stared at her for a moment.

"Who's we?" she asked.

"Hmm?"

"You said 'we all have'. Who is we?" she asked.

"Oh you'll see later. Right now you've just got me. I guess they sent me to pave the way." Jess said.

"Pave the way?" Elena asked.

The blonde turned her eyes on Elena and she suddenly looked serious.

"You can't stop hunting, Elena." she said in a voice that sounded like a warning.

"What?" she said, staring at the other female.

"Sorry, but you can't stop hunting. I think you knew that already, though. Did you really think that you could live the rest of your life in Mystic Falls knowing what you know with the abilities you have? Did you think your work was done, Elena?" Jess asked, leaning forward.

"All right, what the hell are you and what are you doing here?" Elena demanded, getting angry.

"I told you, you wouldn't understand. You'll be able to know one day but not today. Right now, you've got to get Dean back into the game. Both of you still have work to do." Jess said.

"We did our work. Dean did years of work. We're done." Elena said stubbornly.

Jess simply smiled.

"I'm sorry, Elena. You don't have a choice. Sam needs you. Castiel needs you. The world needs you." the blonde said sadly.

"And why do you get to tell me what to do?" she demanded.

Jess sighed and slid off the counter, throwing the yogurt in the trashcan before putting the spoon in the sink.

"I am really sorry. If I could have my way, you would all be out of it. Sam included. But I don't get my way and neither will you. Your time for a domestic life will come but you have to do some things first. I know you'll do the right thing, Elena. We'll explain more but for now my time is up. Go find Sam." she said.

* * *

Elena inhaled sharply, sitting up. Dean's eyes popped open and he sat up as well.

"Are you okay?" he asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

She nodded, inhaling deeply. It was a dream. A very strange dream, but a dream nonetheless.

"Yeah, just a really weird dream." she said, pushing her hair out of her face.

"You wanna tell me about it?" Dean asked, rubbing her back.

She looked over at him.

"You're probably going to think I'm crazy." She warned him.

"That ship has sailed." He said, smirking.

Elena smiled slightly and shook her head.

"I saw Jess." She admitted.

"Jess as in…"

"Sam's Jess." She confirmed.

"That is weird. Where?" Dean questioned.

"In the kitchen. Our kitchen. Downstairs." Elena explained.

"Hmm. What did she say?" He asked.

She shrugged, looking away.

"It didn't make much sense. I think it was just my mind being strange." Elena said, looking over at the clock.

It was time for them to wake up anyways.

"I'm going to go make breakfast. You want to take a shower?" she asked, sliding out of bed and pulling a robe over her pajamas.

"Yeah, sure." Dean nodded.

Elena got downstairs and looked around the kitchen. The glass wasn't on the floor from where she broke the glass in her dream. In fact, the very glass was still in the cabinet when she opened it. Breathing a sigh of relief, she walked to the fridge to pull out the eggs. That was when she saw the line up of yogurt. One of them was missing, a peach one. The exact same one that Jess had been eating in her dream. Her heart began pounding as she slammed the fridge closed. She walked to the trashcan and peeked into it to see that the yogurt cup was lying on top of the trash. The spoon that Jess used was sitting in the exact spot that Jess had placed it. Elena bent over and pulled the yogurt cup out of the trashcan with wide eyes.

"Elena?" she turned to see Jeremy standing there. "Why are you holding my empty yogurt cup?"

She sighed with relief once again, tossing it back in.

"No reason, Jer." She said, smiling slightly.

* * *

Sam looked up with curious eyes as he talked to a detective. He was holding a missing child poster outside of the home where the parents were killed. He was wearing his FBI suit and was in character.

"Where'd you find them?" he questioned.

"We found the parents upstairs. Pretty brutal." The officer informed him.

"Break in?" Sam asked.

"No, alarm never went off." he said, shaking his head.

"Any leads on the baby?" he said, gesturing down to the flyer.

"None yet." The officer said.

"So what do you think? Think it's okay? Alive?" Sam inquired.

"I did yesterday." The man sighed, looking defeated.

"Thank you." Sam nodded, turning to walk off.

He pulled out his phone and dialed the number before holding the thing to his ear.

"Hey. So, I've been all over this. No sulfur. No EMF. I'm starting to think maybe it's not our kind of thing." He said into the speaker.

"Four couples slaughtered in one part of the state within days of each other. That's four babies taken from locked houses. Damn it! Explain to me how any version of that is natural." Samuel replied, frustrated.

"No, no, I agree. It's awful. I'm just saying this one might be on the police." Sam said, approaching his car.

"Okay, so either we've got monsters grabbing babies to make baby stew, or we've got a bunch of psychotic yokels grabbing babies to make baby stew. Either way, it's baby stew, which is bad." Samuel said.

Sam sighed heavily and leaned against his car, shaking his head.

"Am I boring you? You got someplace you need to be?" Samuel asked, anger tinting his voice.

"No, no, no, I get it." Sam said quickly.

"Good. You know, sometimes I wonder about you, Sam." Samuel informed him.

"Sometimes I wonder about me, too." Sam said, looking around as he tugged on his collar.

There was a few moments of silence after the confession.

"Well, I will go back over everything. See if there's anything we missed." Samuel volunteered.

Sam caught sight of something and tilted his head up.

"Hey, the detective said the alarm in the house never went off. You mind taking a quick look? See if anyone else had a system from Harper Caine Security?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure. Any chance I get to hop on a computer." Samuel grumbled before hanging up.

* * *

"What do you mean?" Elena demanded, looking up at Gabriel as she folded clothes.

"I mean that I've got a mark on my back if anyone in heaven finds out that I'm alive. I've been in hiding for a reason. I'm not exactly the most popular in heaven and I got a narrow escape when everyone thought that Lucifer killed me." he explained.

Elena stared at him with disbelief.

"So you're just going back into hiding? What if we need you?" she asked.

"You're not even hunting, Elena. Why could you possibly need me?" Gabriel asked.

"What if the angels come after us? I mean, there's no Michael to stop them and I'm sure we're not the most popular in heaven either." She argued.

"No touchy zone on Mystic Falls, remember? Just stay here and you'll be fine." The archangel shrugged.

"I don't like this, Gabriel." She sighed.

"I don't like it either but I also like my life intact. Here's the deal, Elena. If you absolutely, inescapably need me, just pray to me. It'll be like a honing beacon. I'll come to you in an insant. But only if you really need me." Gabriel said, standing and putting his hands on her cheeks.

"Pray?" Elena said, smiling slightly but immediately losing the smile to sadness.

"Pray. It'll work for you too, you know."

She tilted her head to the side confusedly.

"If someone were to pray to you, you would feel it. You have enough of my grace in you now that it would flare right up." He explained.

"I can get prayers? Me?" she scoffed.

"Yep." He nodded.

Elena bit her lip with uncertainty.

"So… if you get in trouble, you'll pray to me, right?" she asked.

Gabriel smirked.

"Course I will, sugar." He said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead.

Elena sighed heavily and hugged him tightly.

"Stay safe, Gabriel." She said.

"You too, Elena." he said seriously, hugging her back.

* * *

Sam was sitting on a park bench reading a file when his phone rang.

"You were right. Every family that got hit: Harper Caine Security. So I pulled the client records." Samuel said.

"Right, to see if there's any other families who fit the profile." Sam nodded.

"There is another happy couple walking and talking, 6 month old baby, like all the others." The other hunter informed him.

"What's the address?" Sam asked, standing up to walk out of the park.

* * *

"So he disappeared? Just like that?" Dean asked as they moved around the kitchen making dinner together.

"He's going back undercover. He thinks that if angels catch wind that he's still alive, he'll move to number one on the public enemy list." Elena explained.

"But I thought that Cas had heaven under control." he said.

"That's not what Gabriel made it seem like. The way he talked, it sounds like there is total chaos up there." Elena explained.

"Well I can't say that I miss being batted around by those dicks. Minus Cas and Gabriel, of course." Dean commented.

"You and me both." Elena sighed.

"Hey, about that dream you had." He said, turning to face her.

"Hmm?" Elena murmured, chopping up tomatoes.

"Do you think Jess was trying to warn you? Maybe about what brought Sam and Samuel out of the pit?" he asked.

Elena looked over at him before shaking her head.

"She didn't mention Sam at all, actually." She said.

"Oh." Dean said.

"She said that… we can't quit hunting." Elena admitted.

Dean glanced over at her, surprised.

"She said that our work wasn't done and that… we had to go find Sam and get back into it." she said, concentrating on chopping as she spoke.

"Is that what you think?" Dean asked.

She glanced up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, it was your dream. Maybe it was manifestation of your thoughts. So do you really think that we should go back to hunting?" he asked.

"No, I mean, I don't think I do. I'm happy here. I'm happy with you in our nice little domestic life. I mean, it isn't exciting but sometimes less exciting is better." Elena explained.

"But you're bored." Dean guessed.

"Sometimes. That doesn't mean I want to go run off and start hunting again." She shrugged.

Dean stared at her, hearing something behind her words.

"But?" he questioned.

"I just… I miss helping people, you know. It's not for the gratification or anything. I just miss knowing that we might have saved someone's life, even if it was just one person. I miss that feeling." She sighed.

Dean leaned against the counter, folding his arms over his chest.

"I kind of miss that too." He admitted.

Elena sighed.

"Do we… want to go back to hunting?" she asked.

They stared at each other for a moment.

"I think… that we want to finish making dinner. We'll talk about this later, okay?" Dean asked.

Elena nodded, glad for the reprieve from the serious conversation.

"Later." She agreed, smiling at him.

* * *

Sam looked around the neighborhood as he pulled up to the address that Samuel gave him. It seemed relatively quiet and peaceful but, then again, they always did. He got out of the car and grabbed a gun and a flashlight out of the back before walking up to the dark house. A Harper Caine Security sign was sitting in the hedges. When he reached the door, he knelt down and picked the lock quickly before opening it. He immediately found the couple lying dead in the living room, blood everywhere. That was when he caught sight of the bloody footprints. He followed them further into the house, gun and flashlight raised in anticipation.

When he heard a noise behind a door, he crept towards it. Suddenly it slammed open and a man in a security uniform barreled at him, disarming him and knocking him to the ground. Sam reared up and kicked him in the nose, causing him to fly backwards. He yanked a knife out of his belt and slashed the man across the arm, causing his skin to sizzle around the wound as the man cried out in pain. He stumbled backwards and fled, the sound of a window breaking the clue to his escape. Sam sighed and stood, grabbing his gun and flashlight again. He heard a noise and looked around, confused. As he checked the rest of the house, he continued to hear the noise.

Finally he walked into what looked like a guest bedroom. The noise was coming from underneath the bed. He got down on his hands and knees and peeked underneath it, surprise showing on his face when he saw what it was.

* * *

"You know what his answer was." Jenna said, leaning back against the wall.

They were in the living room now. She'd fallen asleep only to find herself in the living room with her aunt.

"How could I possibly know what his answer was? I don't read minds." Elena said from where she was sitting on the couch.

"Then I'll make it clear for you, Dean Winchester lives for hunting. It's his thing. He bleeds hunting. And you know what? You do too. Your body was literally designed to kill those evil things that hide under the bed. So why are you here playing Mr. and Mrs. Smith?" Jenna asked.

"Because Sam…"

"Sam took that back, you heard him. He wants you and Dean to come back to hunting. He needs you both." Jenna said, smiling at Elena.

"But… what about our life here? Jeremy? Ric?" Elena asked.

"Elena, they would not want you to stay here just because of them. You belong out there helping people and you know it." Jenna said.

She sighed.

"Okay, what is up with these dreams? First Jess and now you?" she asked.

"I can't tell you that, I'm sorry." Her aunt said, looking regretful.

"Seriously?" Elena demanded.

Jenna cocked her head to the side.

"Do you hear ringing?"

* * *

Elena jerked awake to hear Dean's phone ringing incessantly on the bedside table on her side.

"Dean." She mumbled, handing it to him.

"Who's calling?" he grumbled, taking it from her.

She glanced at the alarm clock to see that it read 2:37 AM.

"I'm going to kill them, whoever they are." She said, burying her face in the pillow.

"Sam?" Dean said, confused once he answered it.

Elena picked her head up and looked at him, her interest peaked.

"I need your help. Now." She heard Sam's voice say on the other end.

He sounded a little bit panicky.

"What's wrong?" Dean asked, rubbing his forehead.

"I'm working this job." He said.

"Dude." Dean sighed, shaking his head.

"Look, I just need you with me on this, okay?" Sam said pleadingly.

"I told you…" he began.

"Make an exception." Sam interrupted him.

Dean's eyes flashed over to Elena and she shrugged, watching him.

"For what?" he grumbled

"Look, I'm thirty minutes away and I will drive to your door if you don't meet me." Sam threatened.

"And what's so nuts that you gotta threaten a damn drive by?" Dean demanded.

When Sam spoke the words, both of their eyes widened.

* * *

Elena rubbed her eyes as they climbed out of Dean's truck. They met Sam just outside of town on the side of the road because he didn't want to drive into town.

"Where is it?" Dean asked, seeing Sam standing beside his car leaning against it.

"Strapped down in the back seat." Sam said, gesturing at it.

Elena and Dean both peeked into the car and then exchanged a look.

"Welcome to the party." Sam said, his hands in his pockets.

The baby looked back at them with wide eyes, chewing on one of his fingers.

"I think you have to take this one." Elena murmured.

"Are you sure?" Dean said for the thousandth time.

"I'm positive. We'll be just fine here. You go figure out this baby thing with Sam. I have faith that you'll settle it. I already called Sid and told him that you're sick in bed and he gave you a few days off. I'll stay here with Apple and you'll be back soon." Elena said, shoving the duffle bag of weapons in his hands.

He grimaced slightly.

"It'll be fine." She said, putting her hand on his cheek.

"I know I just, I feel bad for leaving you." he admitted.

"Don't. Your brother needs your help." Elena said with a smile.

She leaned forward and kissed him deeply before pulling away and opening the door.

"Now get your ass gone before I shoot you myself." She said with a grin.

"I love you." Dean said, smiling back at her.

"I love you too." She replied, watching as he walked out.

She waved to Sam and then closed the door to get ready for Apple's arrival.

"Alright, so what do we know about this thing?" Dean asked once he reached the car.

"Well, uh, it was fast and it freaked when I cut it with silver." Sam said, opening the trunk for Dean to throw his duffle into.

"Alright, so that narrows it down to..."

"A ghoul? A zombie, a shifter, or about a dozen other things." Sam nodded as they walked to their separate sides of the Dodge Charger.

"I don't recall seeing babynapping in the profiles." Dean commented.

"Yeah, exactly." Sam nodded as they climbed in.

Dean glanced back at the baby who looked perfectly content.

"Well feel free to speak up if you know anything." He said and the little boy just stared at him.

Sam started the car and it immediately began dinging loudly.

"Seatbelt." He said to Dean.

"What am I, in third grade?" the older brothe grumbled, yanking his seatbelt over his chest. "A car should drive, not be a little bitch."

The baby suddenly let out a squeal and they both looked back. Then the little boy let out a fart, taking Sam by surprise as he looked over at Dean.

"Yeah, don't take it personal." He said before looking back at Sam. "Well, we need to get some supplies."

"I've got an arsenal in the trunk." Sam said, smirking.

Dean shook his head.

"Not that kind."

* * *

"So you're having dreams about Jenna and Sam's ex-girlfriend?" Caroline asked as they sat in the kitchen together.

Apple was sitting in a highchair messing around with her food.

"Yep. And I have no idea why." Elena said.

"That's weird. You're weird." The blonde said.

"That's rich, coming from a vampire." Elena shot back.

"At least I'm not having dreams about dead people. It's like you're in the Sixth Sense or something." Caroline shrugged.

"I feel like it sometimes. I just can't help but be nervous. The last time I had someone in my head it was the devil. So I just want to figure out what's going on." she said.

"Maybe you should call one of your angels." She said.

"No, I don't want to bother either of them unless it gets scary. Right now, they just talk to me. They both told me I have to get back to hunting." Elena said.

"Do you want to go back to hunting?" Caroline asked.

"Honestly? I have no idea what I want." Elena admitted.

* * *

They didn't stop right away, driving for a few towns because the kid fell asleep pretty quickly. But now they were in a supermarket grabbing stuff from the baby aisle while Dean pushed a basket with the baby in the carrier that was built into the cart.

"Alright, I'm pretty sure that there's some kind of paste or jelly you're supposed to put on their butt." He said.

Sam reached out and grabbed a box off of the shelf.

"Like uh... like that?" he asked, holding it up for Dean to look at.

"Yeah, grab that." he nodded for Sam to toss it into the basket.

He grabbed a box of diapers and looked at them before nodding and putting them in as well.

"So how do you know all this?" Sam asked curiously.

"Elena has been babysitting a little girl, so I've been on a few milk runs." Dean explained.

"Huh." Sam said, unable to fully hide his smirk.

"Shut it." Dean growled.

"I just said huh." Sam said defensively.

"I just said shut it." Dean shot back.

They were both interrupted by the baby letting out a fussy noise. Dean stared at him for a few moments.

"Alright, we gotta get moving. We've got the waterworks in like, T-minus ten." He said before darting into action.

"Yeah, okay." Sam said, grabbing the basket.

"Go." Dean nodded and Sam ran for the register as the older brother grabbed a few more things.

When he got to the register, the baby was crying loudly as Sam loaded stuff onto the register.

"Shh... shh... Come on, hang in there buddy. Hang in there, man." Dean said, rubbing his stomach.

"Dean, make it stop." Sam hissed.

"How?" Dean snapped back.

"Everyone's staring at us like we're child abusers! Feed it!" Sam said.

"We fed it!"

"Then what?"

"I don't know. You think I speak baby? Maybe he needs a diaper change." Dean said, looking at him with a slight grimace as he pulled the baby out of the carrier.

"Oh God, I hope not." Sam said, grimacing as well before pulling out his phone.

Dean took the baby out as Sam dialed a number.

* * *

"Hello?" Elena answered the phone, wondering why Sam was calling her.

"Hey, Elena. The baby is crying… a lot. We have no idea what to do." Sam said desperately.

She could hear crying in the background.

"Did you feed him?" she asked.

"Yep." Sam confirmed.

"Change him?"

"We were kind of hoping we wouldn't have to do that." Sam admitted.

She sighed heavily, looking at Caroline.

"Hang tight." She said before hanging up.

She stood and looked at Caroline apologetically.

"I need a favor."

* * *

When he put his phone away, Sam heard Dean mimicking the baby's crying in hopes that it might startle him out of his wailing. A woman walked up, smiling at the scene.

"Aw... what's the matter?" she cooed as Dean held the baby with a strange look on his face. "What's his name?"

"Bobby." Dean said at the same time Sam said "John."

"Bobby John." Dean said quickly.

"Hi, Bobby John. Aren't you handsome? May, I?" the woman asked.

They were interrupted by Elena walking up, an exasperated look on her face.

"You're both hopeless." She sighed dramatically.

"Elena? What are you doing here?" Dean said.

"You need help. I left Apple with Caroline and I called Dana. She agreed to keep her for the next few days because I'm sick now. Give me the baby." She said, gesturing to him.

"Oh I can help out." the woman said, smiling pleasantly.

Elena's eyes flashed to her and narrowed dangerously.

"That's a really nice offer, thank you, but um... I think we've got it." she said, taking the baby from Dean.

"Oh, it's nothing. Happy to help." The woman said, a flash of annoyance in her eyes.

Dean's eyes glanced at the screen with the security camera on it. The woman's eyes flashed white on the tape and he knew immediately, just like Elena, that she was a shapeshifter.

"Back off before I stab you in your neck." He snapped, pushing Elena back.

"Dean!" Sam admonished.

Dean pointed at the camera and Sam notice the same thing.

"He belongs with us." The woman hissed, stepping forward.

"Come on, guys." Elena said, yanking them both backwards.

They turned and ran out of the store with the woman pursuing them. When they got to the parking lot, Dean turned and punched the woman, causing her to stumble backwards.

"Help me!" she screamed.

"Hey!" One of the employees came running up.

"He's hurting me!" the shapeshifter cried.

Dean whirled around and ran for the car, diving into the passenger seat. He turned to see Elena buckling Bobby John into the carseat as Sam peeled off.

"The hell does a shifter want with a baby, anyway?" he said, turning to Sam.

"You tell me." Sam shrugged.

"How did you get here?" Dean asked Elena. "And how the hell did it find us?"

"I teleported." Elena said simply, sitting back and sighing.

"You know, it could have been following me this whole time. Since the baby's house."

"Alright, you know, we got to get off the road. Get Bobby John here someplace safe. Figure this thing out." Dean said.

Elena reached over and stroked the baby's head soothingly.

"Okay, alright, shh, shh. Easy." She murmured.

* * *

Dean was concentrating very hard as he worked on changing Bobby John's diaper. Sam was sitting at the table in the motel room researching.

"Okay, alright, you know what? I'll pay you money if you sit still." Dean offered as the kid squirmed on the bed.

Sam let out a laugh and Dean gave him an exasperated look.

"This is like defusing an IED, with poop!" He snapped before turning back to the baby.

"Okay, alright, alright, alright, you are golden, Bobby John." He said, picking him up and putting him against his shoulder. "Time to hit the hay."

He began to hum 'Smoke on the Water' as he carried him over to the crib.

"Dean, you're just going to make it cranky again." Sam sighed.

"Shh, it's working." Dean whispered.

Sam rolled his eyes.

"Okay, if I put you down, you gonna be a man about it?" Dean asked, slowly laying him down.

As soon as he was nestled in the crib, Bobby John went to sleep.

"Huh." Sam said.

"What?" Dean asked, turning to him.

"You're just, uh, actually, not awful at that." Sam shrugged.

"Dude, I'm barely keeping that thing alive. Elena should be back with food soon." Dean said, brushing it off.

"No, no, no, seriously. You've got a whole Dr. Huxtable vibe coming off of you. You're like... father material." Sam said.

"No, man, I'm not. Just cause I spent time with a kid over the past year doesn't mean anything. I mean I kinda had to learn some stuff cause Elena needed some help." Dean shrugged.

Sam was cut off from saying anything else when Elena entered with food. She smiled at the crib where the baby was sleeping before walking to the kitchenette.

"This is… strange." Dean commented as they unloaded the food and separated it out.

"How so?" She asked softly.

"The three of us, back in a motel room. It's like no time has passed." He said.

"It kind of is, huh?" she nodded, smiling.

Dean couldn't help but smile as well because he would be damned if he didn't admit that it felt kinda good to be back here with his brother and his girl… and a baby.

"Crap. I can't believe I missed this." Sam said.

"What?" Dean and Elena said at the same time.

"This house on Elm. The mother was killed, baby was grabbed, but daddy wasn't living in the house at the time so he's still alive. What do you say we go and have a chat?" Sam suggested.

"I say let's." Dean nodded before glancing at the crib.

"You go." Elena said.

"You sure?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, I'll stay with Bobby John. You two go talk to the dad." Elena nodded.

Sam dug in his pocket and pulled out an FBI badge.

"In case you don't have yours." He said.

Dean took it and nodded.

"Thanks."

* * *

Sam and Dean stood before the man, who was in overalls and working on a car, questioning him.

"I just, I still can't believe it. I mean, it's one thing to die like that. The poor baby, just into thin air. No thanks to you guys." He said bitterly, his eyes flashing to them.

"Well, that's why I'm here. You had filed for divorce?" Sam said.

The man made a face.

"It's important, I'm sorry." Dean threw in.

"She, uh. She cheated on me, and, well, I caught her." the man said.

"And did you know the other man?" Sam asked.

"No, I mean, I didn't 'catch her' catch her, but she lied to me." he said.

"Okay." Sam nodded.

"We hadn't, you know, in a while, and then she's pregnant."

"And what did she say?" Dean asked.

"She said it was mine." Dean and Sam both made a face. "I know. And I said that's impossible and what is she talking about. And she says don't you remember when you went out of town and then you came back early?"

"But you didn't." Sam confirmed.

"No. I was at a damn softball tournament. Whoever he was, he's the father." The man said confidently.

* * *

Elena was laying back on the bed. Suddenly she heard a squelching noise and the baby let out a cry before bursting into wails. She sat up with wide eyes to see blood and skin covering the wall above the crib. She walked to it slowly and her phone suddenly rang.

"Yeah?" She said when she answered.

"We talked to the father. He checks out. But the baby..." Dean trailed off.

"Mm-hm?" she encouraged him to talk as she lifted the baby out of the crib.

"We think the shapeshifter is his dad." Dean said.

Elena picked up Bobby John and held him out at arm's length. He no longer looked like the baby they knew. He looked like the African-American baby on the side of the diaper box that was sitting next to the crib.

"You think?" she said, her eyes wide.

* * *

Bobby John was still crying fifteen minutes later as Elena was waiting for Sam and Dean to get back. She just finished cleaning him up and changing him and now she was rocking him back and forth while standing. Suddenly there was a knock on the door that startled them both.

"Manager! Everything okay in there?" a man's voice said.

"Yeah, no, we're fine. Thank you. Good night." She called back.

"There's been complaints. Mind opening the door, ma'am?" the manager asked.

"It's not a good time." she said.

The doorknob suddenly began rattling and she squinted at it, suddenly understanding that this was not the manager. She set Bobby John in the crib and went to stand to the side of the door, pulling her dagger out. The door unlocked and the shapeshifter, in the form of a police officer, stepped into the room. As he passed her, she launched out and tackled him to the ground. He reacted instantly, shoving her back. She quickly scrambled up and got in betwee him and the crib. He stood slowly, glaring at her.

"Get out of the way." he snapped.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen." Elena scoffed, still gripping her dagger tightly.

"That child should be with his father." He said.

"I don't really see the resemblance, sorry." She shrugged.

"I'm not just talking about me. I'm talking about our father." The shapeshifter said.

He moved to attack but Elena reacted, stepping to the side and throwing him into the wall before slashing him across the face with her knife. He yelled out but she didn't stop, pulling her arm back and then stabbing the knife into his heart. She stepped back as he fell to the ground lifeless, the knife dripping blood onto the carpet. She heard a noise and turned to see Dean and Sam standing there.

"Well, there goes our deposit." Dean commented.

* * *

"You know, it's pretty smart, actually. I mean, shifter poses as a guard for the security company to get near the house. Then it scopes out the fam." Sam said as he drove.

They were driving down the dark road with Elena sitting in the back with a sleeping Bobby John as Dean and Sam sat in the front.

"Yeah, and then daddy takes off, and shifter becomes daddy. A few glasses of wine, shakes momma's trees, comes back in nine months to collect its prize." Dean nodded.

"I didn't even know they had babies. I thought they were just freaks of nature, like X-Men style." Sam said.

"You learn something new every day, huh?" Dean nodded.

Elena couldn't help but smile at how quickly they fell back into their old banter again. Except this was better than before. There was no Ruby or Lilith hanging over their heads. There was no oncoming apocalypse. There was no need for drama or confrontation. They were just talking like brothers.

"I've never seen a baby monster before." Sam said.

"Of course it's not really a monster. I mean, it's still just a baby. It's not its fault its dad's a shifter." Dean reminded him.

"Right, but it's a shifter, too." Sam replied.

"Still doesn't change the fact that we've got to look after this thing. I mean, what the hell are we going to do with it? We can't actually drop it off at an orphanage. They might get upset when it turns Asian." Dean said, making both Elena and Sam chuckle at the thought.

"Samuel." Sam suddenly said.

"What?" Dean and Elena said at the same time.

"Samuel. He'll know what to do." Sam suggested.

"You want to bring it to a bunch of hunters?" Dean scoffed.

"Not just hunters, Dean. They're our family." Sam said.

Elena glanced in between them, not wanting to get in between this fight about Samuel. Dean didn't trust him and she didn't blame him, especially since they had no idea how he was back from the dead. Add that to the fact that the rest of the family were kind of assholes and it didn't make them the most attractive option.

"We don't know them." Dean said, shaking his head.

"I do. Not every hunter is a head case. I mean, Samuel is actually a lot like you." Sam shrugged.

Dean stared at him.

"I'm a freaking head case."

Elena shook her head at his ridiculousness.

"Well, pitch a better idea then." Sam challenged them.

They both remained silent.

"Great! Samuel, it is." He nodded.

* * *

To both Dean and Elena's surprise, they pulled up to a compound. Sam immediately drove to a building and they all got out, Elena holding Bobby John. They walked inside a dark lit room filled with weapons and tables and saw Christian, Gwen, and Mark in there. Gwen immediately walked up to Elena and smirked at her before looking down at Bobby John. She stroked his cheek as Elena and Dean watched her warily, something in her eyes bothering them.

"Well aren't you just the best disguise a monster ever wore?" Elena tensed up and stepped backwards as Dean glared at her.

"I'm kidding. Relax." She said, holding her hands up in surrender before walking off.

Mark walked up to them as they stepped forward again, staring between them.

"What, you got something to say?" Dean said.

The other hunter remained silent as they stared back at him.

"No? Alright, well, you stand there and think at me." Dean said snarkily before leading Elena past him.

Sam and Samuel entered the room, Sam obviously having told the older hunter about the kid.

"What's our next move?" Sam asked as they approached Elena and Dean.

"I got a couple of ideas. Here, let me see the little guy." Samuel said, holding his hands out to Elena.

"That's alright, she's got him." Dean said, stepping in front of her.

There was only one person that he knew could keep that baby safe for sure and that was the person holding him.

"What do you think I'm going to do?" Samuel asked, staring back at Dean.

"You really don't want me to answer that question." Dean fired back warningly.

"Well I'm curious. Who exactly do you think we are?" Christian said, leaning forward.

Dean glanced over at him with a scowl.

"Hunters." He answered.

"Funny, here I've been thinking we're family." Christian said, glowering at Dean as he stood.

"Hey, let's not get worked up." Sam said, stopping Christian from approaching them.

"Yeah, yeah, let's not." Christian nodded, backing off.

Sam turned to Elena.

"Here, guys, it's fine. Let me take him. It's okay."

Elena unwillingly relinquished the baby over to Sam, watching with narrowed eyes as he handed him to Samuel.

"Hey there. You're a big fella, aren't ya? Yeah. I haven't held one of these in a long time." Samuel said, looking down at the kid.

"Your mom was the tiniest. She was as bald as a cue ball." He said to the brothers, smiling slightly.

Neither of them smiled back as they were too tense to do so.

"Alright, so what the hell are we going to do with him?" Dean demanded.

"Raise him." Samuel said simply.

"Raise him?" Elena asked, surprised.

"What, you've got another suggestion?" Samuel asked.

"But..." Dean began.

"It's dangerous out there for him, Dean." Samuel interrupted him.

"And what about in here? What are we gonna… study him? Poke at him?" Dean questioned angrily.

"Your mind goes straight to torture, Dean. Don't assume that for everyone." Christian said.

Both Dean and Elena's heads turned to him at the exact same time, showing everyone who didn't know it how in synch they were.

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Dean snapped.

"Sorry, I heard about what you majored in down in the Pit." Christian shrugged, leaning back in the chair he was sitting in.

Elena's hands balled into fists and she glared at the man.

"The hell is your problem, man?" Dean demanded.

"You're starting to become a pain in my ass." Christian said, standing up and advancing on Dean.

Elena was in front of Dean defensively before anyone could blink, her hand on her dagger that was sticking out of the sheath.

"Christian, take it easy, man." Sam said, stopping the hunter.

Christian's eyes didn't move from Dean until they flashed to Elena. At the ferocity of her glare, he balked and stepped backwards, brushing it off as he turned away.

"We all done bristling up here, or what?" Samuel said, looking around at everybody. "Nobody's doing anything to him, Dean. When he's old enough, we throw it to him. He wants to volunteer to help out, that's fine."

"Could be great." Mark finally spoke, smiling slightly.

"How?" Dean asked.

"Think of the kind of hunter he'll grow up to be." Mark shrugged.

"You all are joking, right?" Elena said, staring around at them.

"Come on! You can't 'Angelina Jolie' a shapeshifter." Dean said in agreement, staring around at them. "Give me the baby."

He stepped forward to take Bobby John from Samuel.

"Why can't you give me an inch of trust, Dean?" the older hunter asked.

"Maybe because you two are suddenly back from the dead, and I seem to be the only one who wants to know how the hell that happened!" Dean snapped, glaring at him.

"You're not the only one who wants to know." Sam said.

"There's just a little too much mystery with this family for me to get comfy." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Then don't! But don't put it on us. All we're trying to do is invite you in." Samuel said before taking a breath. "Christian?"

He turned to the hostile, annoying hunter.

"Yeah?" Christian said.

"You and Arlene, still no luck on the baby front?" Samuel asked him.

"Not yeah, no." Christian said.

Both Elena and Dean glanced between them with wide eyes.

"But you want one?" Samuel questioned.

"Yeah, we do." Christian nodded.

"Wait, hold on." Dean said, stepping forward.

"It's okay, Dean. It's alright." Samuel assured him before handing Bobby John over to Christian, who smiled down at the baby.

"Congrats. It's a boy, sometimes." Samuel said.

Christian laughed and shook his head.

"The crap I do for this family." He commented.

"You're kidding me, right?" Dean scoffed.

"Go to hell, Dean." Christian snapped.

"Well, you have no business raising anything." Dean growled.

"Why, Dean? Because he's a hunter?" Sam demanded.

They both turned to look at him but no one was able to answer because dogs began barking and howling outside. Everyone suddenly snapped into motion.

"Check the back door." Samuel instructed.

Christian handed Bobby John back to Samuel and he handed the baby off to Elena.

"Downstairs, panic room. He'll be safe there. Go." he said.

Sam led Elena off as Dean hesitated.

"Forget it, go! Now!"

All three of them ran towards the panic room with Bobby John. Gwen, Christian, Mark, and Samuel retrieved weapons and readied themselves, aiming at the door. It was suddenly kicked in by a shapeshifter that was disguised as Samuel. He walked in with an angry look on his face.

"You have something of ours. I know he's here. I can feel him." he said.

Gwen shot him twice in the back with a shotgun from behind him as she snuck up. It had no effect. He approached her and Mark jumped between them, shoving a blade into his heart. The shifter immediately snapped his neck just as Samuel shot him in the back with a tranquilizer. Gwen ran forward next but he caught her and held her by the throat. Christian and Samuel began unloading tranquilizer darts into his back. Finally he stumbled and let go of Gwen, looking back at them.

"Easy tiger." Samuel warned.

Then he glanced at Christian.

"Get the silver nets. We're gonna box him up."

Before Christian could move, the shifter stood up and the darts shot out of his back. He smirked before advancing on them.

* * *

Dean and Sam paced as Elena bounced the baby who was fussing.

"Come on, Bobby John. You have got to keep quiet." She whispered.

They heard gunfire going off upstairs and Dean glanced up.

"It does not sound good up there." he commented.

"Alright, I'm going to go up. Stay with the baby." Sam said, walking to the door.

Before he could walk through, a face appeared in it. Sam stumbld backwards and pulled out his knife. The shapeshifter suddenly pulled the panic room door off of its hinges. He reached in and grabbed Sam, slamming his head into the wall and knocking him out. Dean jumped in front of Elena as the shifter approached them. Suddenly he shimmered slightly and changed into Dean's form without shedding his skin. Elena's eyes widened as they stepped away.

"What the..." Dean said.

"Give me the baby." The shapeshifter said.

"No way in hell." Dean said, putting himself in front of Elena and glaring at the creature.

Elena watched with horror as the shifter's hand wrapped around Dean's throat. He raised him into the air and began choking him. She couldn't do anything while holding the baby. Dean choked and sputtered as he slowly faded away.

"Wait." She said, staring at the shifter.

He looked over at her with cold, emotionless eyes.

"Here." She held out Bobby John.

The shifter let Dean drop to the floor barely conscious.

"Take him and don't hurt anyone else." she warned.

The shifter reached out and took the baby from her. Elena knelt at Dean's side as he turned to walk out. After healing him, he moved onto Sam, healing him as well. Then she looked up.

"Elena." Dean said, sitting up.

She glanced back at him.

"Be right back." she said before disappearing.

* * *

Samuel, Gwen, and Christian were just reviving when they saw the shapeshifter walking through the room towards the door with the baby in his arms. He was in Dean's form now. They all stood and knew that there was nothing they could do. They were, however, shocked when Elena appeared in front of him.

"Hi." She said, waving.

His eyes narrowed at her.

"Yeah, it wasn't that easy. Sorry." She shrugged, her hand flicking to her dagger.

"That won't work on me." he warned her.

Elena sighed as they all watched her. Sam and Dean ran in to see her facing off with the powerful shifter.

"Yeah, I figured as much. One can always hope, right?" Elena sighed, dropping her hand.

"Get out of my way, before I kill you." the shapeshifter warned.

"I have heard that far too many times for that threat to scare me." she said.

"What is she doing?" Samuel hissed.

"Give her a second." Dean said confidently, watching her with a slight smile.

The shifter held the baby tightly before walking forward. Suddenly Elena appeared behind him and reached around, touching the baby's forehead. He disappeared and the shifter let out a howl of rage, whirling around to grab her and kill her. She was already a few feet away.

"You're going to want to shut your eyes now." She warned the people behind her.

They heeded her warning immediately, all dropping to the ground and covering their heads. They saw the bright light fill the room behind their eyelids and heard the yell of the shapeshifter before a thump sounded and the light disappeared. They looked up to see Elena staring down at the motionless body of the shapeshifter.

"He's dead?" Dean asked hesitantly, walking forward.

She turned him over to see that his eyes weren't burned out like they should have been.

"No, I think he's weakened. Apparently it takes more than just firing grace at him." she explained.

"We have to lock him up before he wakes up. Christian, Gwen." He nodded at them.

Christian walked forward with a needle and injected it straight into the shapeshifter's heart.

"Elena the last time you did that you almost killed yourself." Dean reminded her as he reached her.

"That last time I did that, I didn't have a Gabriel upgrade. I'm fine." She assured him.

Then she turned to see the shocked faces of the Campbells.

"Bobby John is down in the panic room." she said before walking to Mark and kneeling at his side.

Samuel started forward to kneel at his family member's side as well but Sam stopped him.

"Let her do her thing." He said softly.

Elena placed her hand over his heart and everyone but Sam and Dean watched with surprise as light flowed out of her hands and into Mark's body. He suddenly inhaled sharply and sat up, looking around wildly.

"Welcome back." she said simply before standing and looking at the Campbells.

Then she nodded at Dean.

"We'll leave Bobby John with you but if I find out that anything is going on, we'll kill you just for Elena to bring you back." he said.

"What the hell is she, anyways?" Gwen asked as they dragged the shapeshifter into a cell that was set up in the corner of the room.

"Powerful." Elena said simply.

Dean glanced at the shifter as Christian locked the cell.

"What the hell was that thing?" he asked.

"We think it may be an Alpha." Samuel answered.

"An alpha, like?" Dean said, his brow furrowing.

"Like all monsters come from somewhere, right?" Samuel explained.

"And you think that this one was…" Elena began.

"The king shapeshifter. First one who spawned all the others… there's tons of lore about it." Samuel explained.

"Like the Originals." Elena mumbled, looking at Dean.

He nodded.

"That's why it was so strong, and why nothing we had stopped it." Sam confirmed.

"And he said that he could find the baby anywhere. That he could feel it, like there's a connection. That's in the lore, too." Samuel nodded.

"What the hell does it want with babies, anyway?" Dean asked.

"A softball team? I got no clue." Samuel asked.

"Great, well then how do we kill it?" Dean asked.

"I don't know if we can." Samuel sighed.

* * *

Elena walked out next to Dean as Sam led them out of the compound.

"You know, it's funny." Dean said, looking ahead at Sam.

"What's that?" the younger Winchester asked.

"Elena said that the shifter in the motel mentioned a father, which makes sense now because he meant the Alpha." Dean said.

"Huh. Yeah, I guess so." Sam shrugged.

"Did you hear her tell me that?" Dean asked.

"Uh, I don't know. Kind of a hot moment, you know? Why?" Sam asked, turning back to look at them as they reached the car.

"Well, because if you heard, then you knew the Alpha was out there." Dean said.

"Okay." Sam said, not understanding.

"And if you knew the Alpha was out there then you knew he might come after the baby. In which case you were using the baby as bait. So was that the plan? To use the baby as bait?" Dean asked.

Elena looked at Sam, not wanting to believe that Sam would do that.

"Of course not. Dean, I just thought that Samuel's was the safest place. That's all." Sam said, his brow furrowed.

"Right, of course." he nodded, looking a little bit skeptical.

Elena and Dean exchanged a wary look before climbing in the car after Sam.

* * *

Samuel sighed as he sat in the kitchen, rubbing his head.

"Yeah, we caught it. But I shot it full of elephant tranquilizer, and it chuckled!" he said into the phone.

"How did we catch it? With the Gilbert girl's help, just like you said would happen. Let me tell you, she comes in handy in a sticky situation. Yeah we'll have him ready. See you in a few." He said before hanging up.

* * *

Elena was drying dishes in the kitchen the next day when Dean walked in, looking conflicted about something.

"Hey." She said, smiling at him.

"Hey, where's Jeremy and Alaric?

"Jeremy is at Bonnie's and Alaric is with Damon." She answered before studying his face. "What is it?"

"I don't know what to do here, Lena." He admitted.

Elena bit her lip and put the cloth on the counter before turning to him.

"Dean, can I be honest? My family is safe here no matter whether we're here or gone. The Originals, God forbid I rely on them, are actually proving to come in handy. Damon and Stefan are here and they all know how to handle weapons that we've taught them even more over the past year. That combined with the fact that I can pop here whenever I need to changes things. I don't know what's going to happen if we go down the hunting road again but the one thing that I do know is that you're not a mechanic. You're a hunter. And now we know Sam is out there, things are different. You don't want to be here, Dean." Elena said, taking his hand.

"Yes, I do." He sighed.

"Dean, we don't have to stay here. No matter what, I go where you go so you won't be leaving me behind. Dean you are white-knuckling it living like this. Like what you are is some bad, awful thing. But you're not. You're good and you like to save people. So what's keeping us from going, huh? We've had a year and it's been great. But I think we both need to get back out there. We both need to keep saving people. I felt so… fulfilled when I used by abilities the other day. I need to use them to help people or else they're useless." Elena said.

Dean glanced up at her.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I'm more sure about this than I've ever been about anything other than that I love you." she said, smiling.

"You know, that was pretty cheesy." He commented.

"I'm all right with it." she shrugged, smiling as she brought him in for a hug.

"It'll all be okay, Dean. You'll see." She sighed as he wrapped his arms around her.

* * *

"We'll miss you." Jeremy said as he hugged her.

"I'll be back sooner than you think." Elena said, pulling away.

She smiled and patted her brother's cheek.

"If you ever need me, I learned a new trick. You don't even have to pull out your phone. Just pray to me and I'll feel it." she said.

"Really?" Jeremy asked, smirking.

"Yep." She nodded, smiling back.

"Well, I'll keep that in mind. It's freaky, but it might be interesting." He nodded.

Elena let out a chuckle and turned to look at the rest of the people. Even Dana was there with Apple balanced on her hip.

"Are you sure you have to leave? She loves you." Dana said, looking at Elena sadly.

"I'm sure. It's been a great year but Dean and I have stuff to do." Elena said, reaching out to stroke the little girl's cheek.

Dean walked up beside her and reached out, ruffling Apple's hair.

"See you later, Blueberry." He said, smirking at her.

Dana let out a laugh and smiled at Dean, a friendly smile instead of a flirty one.

"Time to go?" Elena asked.

"Yep." He nodded.

They both turned and walked into the house, grabbing their last few bags before walking to the garage. Dean pressed the button to open it as Elena stood there.

"You ready?" he asked, facing her.

"Yep." She nodded, smiling.

He grinned and reached down, pulling the cover off of the Impala. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief at seeing her finally revealed after a year of sitting around.

"Hey baby." Dean said with a smirk.

"Come on." Elena walked to the trunk and he opened it so that they could throw the last few bags in.

Then they walked to the separate sides of the car and climbed in, huge smiles on both of their faces.

"I missed her." Elena admitted.

"You and me both." he said, letting out a breath as he turned her on.

'Smoke on the Water' immediately blasted out of the speakers. Elena and Dean looked at each other and nodded before their hands entwined and Dean pulled out of the garage. Everyone was still standing around on the lawn.

Dean rolled down the window as they came to a stop. Elena tossed her keys out at Jeremy, who caught them.

"All yours." She said with a smile, knowing that Jeremy wanted his own car for a while now.

"Thanks, Lena." He said, grinning.

"See you later." Dean said, saluting everyone.

"Bye! Love you!" Elena said, waving at them.

Dean pulled away from the curb and both of them relaxed more and more as they drove in the familiar car. This was their home again. Now they just needed Sam back in it and it would be all set right again.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope that this chapter did not disappoint! Review please!**

**A few things:**

**1. Gabriel is not gone for good but he's not going to be as prevalent in this part as he was in the last one. He's still gonna show up but he is in hiding again.**

**2. Elena's 'dreams' are not just dreams, in case that's not clear. It is one of the many mysteries.**

**3. Castiel is in the next chapter!**

**4. REVIEW PLEASE!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, DrawingMyHeartOut, CherrySin, Dark Alana, slayerdiaries, Nyssandria, IgnitingFireworks, diehardromantic, Deanwinchesterrocks, LineChokor, Whitlocked-kat, Hollywood17, xxPaige23xx, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson for reviewing!**

**To Deanwinchesterrocks, all right fine, you've convinced me. I'll figure out a way to make 'Weekend at Bobby's' work. :)**

**To Hollywood17, all of the people that Elena is dreaming about are still dead for now.**

**To everyone, I can't believe we've already gotten to 100 reviews after just five chapters! You are all absolutely amazing and I love you! Remember that if you want to see something in the story, just let me know in your review!**

**A few things:**

**1. An old enemy comes back for a short part at the beginning of the chapter.**

**2. Elena and Dean's suspicions start flaring up about Sam's secret.**

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**4. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Ain't he a sleeping beauty?" Elena heard a voice say.

Her eyes slid open and she looked around the car where her and Dean fell asleep. When her eyes went to the back, they widened instantly.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she growled.

"I'm not entirely sure." The other brunette said thoughtfully.

Elena ripped the dagger out of her belt and whirled around to ram it into Ruby's chest. The demon was no longer there.

"You can't kill me, Elena. Not this time." Ruby said casually from the other side of the backseat.

"Watch me." Elena snapped, scrambling into the backseat.

When she looked around, the demon was sitting in the front seat.

"Please just listen to me. I don't get to leave until you do. So do us both a favor and stop trying to kill me." Ruby sighed, opening the door and climbing out of the car.

Elena followed her warily, unsure of why the other female was in her dreams.

"Why are you here?" she demanded, shutting the door and walking to the front of th ecar.

"Like I said, I'm not sure." Ruby repeated.

Elena's eyes narrowed angrily and her hand gripped the dagger that was still in it.

"Calm down, Xena. I said I don't know why I'm here. I never said I didn't know who sent me ehre. If you hear me out, I'll tell you." Ruby offered.

Elena relaxed slightly and leaned against the hood of the Impala.

"Fine. This is my hearing you out." she said, crossing her arms over her chest after placing her knife back in the sheath.

"I came to give you a message, just like the others." The demon said, crossing her arms as well.

"Okay?" Elena said simply, encouraging her to speak.

"You have to watch Sam." Ruby said.

Elena scoffed, shaking her head.

"You got a lot of nerve, talking about Sam to me." she said in an accusatory tone.

"I don't owe you an explanation, Elena. Don't even try to get one from me." Ruby snapped, rolling her eyes.

"You raised Lucifer! You led Sam to the edge and shoved him off of the cliff!" Elena yelled.

"I was being loyal to my father! Can you say the same?" she shot back, glaring.

"My dad is dead. In fact, both of them are dad." Elena said in an angry tone.

"Not your earthly father, smart one. Your father. Oh Great One." Ruby said, pointing up.

"He isn't my father. I'm not an angel." Elena scoffed.

"Okay fine, grandfather. You're second generation." The demon waved off.

"What does that even mean?" Elena asked, a hint of hostility still in her voice.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me. Why do you think you're so damn attached to Gabriel? He's basically your angel daddy!" Ruby said, throwing her hands in the air exasperatedly.

Elena just shook her head, turning to face away from her.

"If you think about it, we're related. My granddaddy is your granddaddy. We're basically cousins."

Elena turned and faced the demon with a raised eyebrow.

"Isn't it all starting to sound a little Shakespeare with the twisted drama?" Ruby questioned, grinning.

"Who sent you here?" Elena questioned abruptly.

"Moment's over then?" she said, shrugging.

Elena just stared at her.

"Fine, grumpy. The big guy in the sky." Ruby sighed.

"God?" Elena said.

"Yep." The demon nodded.

"Why would he sened a demon into my dream?" Elena asked, sounding skeptical.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask Papa Smurf when you see him again at the next family reunion? I don't think I'm invited cause I don't really get any face time with him, you know?" Ruby reminded her.

"Wait a minute, again? What do you mean by that? I've met God before?" Elena said, her eyes growing wide and imploring.

Ruby smirked.

"And that's all the time we have for today." She said, stepping backwards.

The demon lifted her hand and snapped her fingers.

* * *

Elena gasped and sat up as a truck horn blared outside of the car. Dean let out a small yell and did the same, looking around. She glanced in the backseat to see that it was empty.

"You okay?" Dean sighed, sounding exhausted.

"No. Next time we get a motel room. I don't care if we have to pay with our own money." She grumbled, stretching as much as she could in the car.

"Agreed." He nodded, stretching his neck muscles out. "Did you have another dream?"

She nodded slowly.

"I saw Ruby." Elena admitted.

Dean made a face, torn between worry and disgust.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"She told me to look out for Sam." she informed him, looking over at him.

"Well that's rich." He scoffed.

"That's what I thought. But… what if the warning is legitimate? We've barely been around Sam. What if there is some side effect of going to hell that we haven't seen?" Elena asked.

Dean looked doubtful.

"Elena you're taking a warning from a demon in your dreams who has a history of lying and fucking things up. Sam is fine, we've seen it." he said.

"Yeah I guess." She sighed, nodding.

* * *

Sam breathed heavily, going through his exercise routine in the space of the motel room. After a few minutes, he was interrupted by his companion for the night walking in from the bathroom.

"Don't stop on my account." She said with a coy grin, admiring his bare torso.

Sam let out a short laugh.

"I'm done."

"Last night was a..." she cleared her throat. "… high point, if you don't mind me saying."

"Good." Sam nodded.

"All right. Well, I see you need to start your day. When did you say you were heading out?" the woman asked, looking up at him.

Sam exhaled sharply, indicating that he was a little impatient.

"You didn't. Right. Damn, you know how to play that mystery card." She informed him, picking up her purse and turning to leave.

"Ahem." Sam cleared his throat and she turned back to see him holding up a roll of cash.

"Right. I almost forgot." She said, walking back to him and taking the money.

Then she pulled a piece of paper out of her bra.

"Next time..." she handed him the note. "… you can call me on my night off. If you want." She suggested.

"Okay." Sam said simply, staring at her.

"Okay." She nodded, turning to leave.

As soon as she was gone, he scrunched up the paper and tossed it into the trashcan.

* * *

Elena looked over at Dean as he dialed Sam's number. They were sitting outside of a fast food place grabbing food before they got on the road. She was leaning against the car munching on a burger.

"Hey. We're about eight hours out of the Campbell Base." He said in the phone, putting it on speaker.

"Uh, change of plans. I need you to meet me. I'm in PA. Town called Easter." Sam said over the phone.

"What are you doing in Pennsylvania?" Elena asked, looking at Dean with a furrowed brow.

"Caught a case." Sam said simply.

"A case? When? It's been like a day and a half." Dean said, surprised.

"I like to work." He said unapologetically.

"Apparently." Dean agreed.

There was a few moments of awkward silence.

"Glad we hashed that out. Call me when you two roll into town." Sam said before hanging up.

Dean and Elena both stared at the phone before exchanging questioning looks.

"Who died and made him boss?" he asked.

Elena shrugged, wondering if Ruby was telling the truth when she said that Sam needed to be looked out for.

"Looks like we'll need to change." She said, looking down at their clothing.

* * *

"This feel so weird." She said, picking at the business-like outfit that she was wearing.

"But you look great." Dean commented.

"So do you, Mr. FBI." Elena said, grinning over at him as they pulled up to the police station where Sam directed them.

She was a little giddy that they were back on a case, the three of them just like before. She could tell that, even though he was a little more subdued, Dean was happy about it too. They climbed out of the car and Sam looked up from where he was reading something.

"It's about time." he said, handing them two badges.

"Did you miss us, Sam?" Elena teased, smiling slightly.

He let out a laugh and gestured for them to walk inside.

"Still driving the plastic piece of crap, huh?" Dean said, glancing back at the Dodge Charger.

Elena rolled her eyes at his insistence that the Impala was the only car worth driving.

"What's your mileage, again?" Sam said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Shut up." Dean muttered as they walked into the station.

"Officer Gerald Hatch, seventeen-year veteran, found dead in the ready room three days ago." Sam briefed them as they walked towards the morgue.

Dean was reading the file as Elena was listening.

"Whoa. Somebody was over-hydrated." he said, sounding interested.

Sam let out a laugh and nodded.

"Basically, yeah. The guy just... liquefied. Most of the meat, bones, dense tissues… they just turned to blood." He informed them.

"Okay, I don't get it." Dean said, closing the file.

"Nobody gets it." Sam agreed.

"Well at least we know it's not normal." Elena shrugged

"No. I mean, I get that. I'm saying, if the guy was a mop job, then what are we doing in the morgue? What's left of him to look at?" Dean asked as they walked into the morgue.

"Not here to look at him. Here." Sam pulled a drawer open and bent down to pull the sheet off.

A man covered in boils was lying on the cold metal table.

"Ooh. Bad news." Dean said as both he and Elena winced.

"Officer Toby Gray. They just brought him in. Found him dead in his patrol car, sitting at a speed trap on the outside of town." Sam explained.

"Extreme allergic reaction." Elena read the toe tag.

"Yeah. Boils. Covered from head to toe." Sam nodded.

"Yeah, on the inside, too. It says his airways are chock full of them. This startin' to look a little witchy to you?" Dean said, looking at the second file that Sam handed him.

"That was my first instinct, but I found zero signs of hexwork anywhere. Far as I can tell, witchcraft was not involved." Sam said, covering the body and shoving the body back into the drawer.

"There's got to be some sort of link between, uh, skid mark and bubble wrap here." Dean suggested.

"No question." Sam said.

"Didn't you say something about a witness?" Elena asked.

"Yep. Uh..." Sam looked down at his notes. "… Officer Ed Colfax. Saw Hatch go from a solid to a liquid."

"Another cop?" Dean questioned.

"Hatch's partner." The other Winchester said as they turned to walk out of the morgue.

* * *

Once they drove out of the parking lot, Sam made the assumption that Dean would follow him to the address. He was sorely mistaken as Dean took it personally that Sam was driving a 'hunk of plastic'. He instructed Elena to pull up the address on her GPS and she did so, laughing as she shook her head. As soon as she found the route, Dean sped away as quickly as he could.

"What are you doing?" Elena said delightedly, shaking her head as she grinned.

"Proving that my baby is always the best." Dean said with his hands clenching his steering wheel.

Once they reached the officer's street, they saw Sam's car pulling onto it. Dean flew out and moved in front of him, his tires squealing as he came to a stop at the house. Elena had her hand over mouth and was trying not to burst into laughter once they climbed out of the car. Her face was turning red with the restraint she was trying to keep in place.

"Were you, uh... were you racing me?" Sam asked, making her bite her lip even harder.

"No. I was kicking your ass." Dean muttered, making a laugh finally escape from her mouth.

"Very mature." Sam scoffed with a slight smile, shaking his head.

Sam reached forward and knocked on the door once they reached it.

"Hello? Officer Colfax?" Dean said.

An officer opened it in a fancy uniform.

"Whoa. Lookin' sharp, Kojak." He said.

"Who the hell are you?" the police officer demanded, staring between all of them.

"We're the Fed, Ed. We're here to ask you a few follow-up questions about your partner's death." Sam said, holding up his badge.

"Don't worry about it. It's nobody's business." Ed said.

In Elena's opinion, he looked a little worse for wear, bags under his eyes and his skin pale.

"Officer Colfax…" Sam began.

"Don't worry about it!" he yelled again before slamming the door shut.

Elena, Dean and Sam all exchanged looks. Dean and Elena turned to walk off, ready to call this a dead end but Sam, exasperated, reared back and kicked the door in.

"Dude!" Dean complained, his eyes wide.

Sam didn't listen and they followed him in. They passed a wall of family photos but they all, strangely enough, had the faces scratched out. They found Ed sitting in his office using a screwdriver to scratch out the face of his own police portrait.

"Officer Colfax?" Sam said.

The man didn't respond, just concentrating on what he was doing.

"Hey, man, you all right?" Dean said, concerned.

"Don't worry about it." Ed said, not lifting his eyes.

"Right. Look, Officer Colfax… Ed. We think that your partner died of unnatural causes." Dean pointed out.

Ed looked up, scratching his hat as they all looked at him strangely, wondering what was wrong with this guy. Elena's first thought was that he might have been possessed.

"Did he have any enemies that you know of?" Dean questioned.

"You might say that." Ed said.

"Oh, yeah? Who's that?" Sam asked.

"They both had it coming. Me too. I'll be the next to go, and then it'll be over. And God will be satisfied." Ed said, turning his attention back on the picture.

"Why does God want you all dead?" Elena asked, her eyebrows knitting together.

"Cause of Christopher Birch." He said simply.

His hand moved and he knocked over a bottle of alcohol. His eyes went to it and he watched it as it spilled out onto the floor.

"Oh, damn it." he said, not moving to pick it up.

"Who's Christopher Birch?" Sam urged him to continue.

"He has no face." Ed said simply, watching the liquid pour out.

"Ed?" Elena said, tilting her head to the side.

"Officer, you all right?" Dean asked, all of them wondering what they should do.

Ed reached out and picked the bottle up, setting it down right side up.

"Who is Christopher Birch, Ed?" Sam asked.

He reached up and scratched his hat again, staring off into space.

"Ed!" Dean snapped, getting his attention.

"Christopher Birch is a kid with no face... and a planted gun." Ed said simply.

Realization dawned on their faces just as a trickle of blood came out from underneath the police officer's hat.

"Uh, you, uh... you got a little something..." Dean said, gesturing to it.

Ed lifted his hand and put his finger to it before drawing it away and staring at the blood covered digit.

"Damn. My head's been itching like a dirty jock." He commented before falling forward.

His face landed directly on the broken glass of the picture frame and he didn't move again. Elena and Dean stared at him as Sam walked forward and pressed his fingers to Ed's neck.

"Dead." He confirmed, looking at them.

Elena's head lifted and she looked around when she heard a strange noise.

"You hear that?" Dean said, commenting on the buzzing.

Sam reached down hesitantly and pulled Ed's hat off where the noise seemed to be emanating from. Elena stumbled backwards as her stomach lurched. Even Dean looked sick to his stomach as they watched the locusts crawl out of the hole in Ed's head.

* * *

Dean and Sam were both at the table working, Sam looking at his laptop while Dean read through books. Elena was sitting on a bed with her legs stretched out also reading stuff. They were all out of their business clothes and back into casual clothing.

"Sweet. Blood, boils, locusts." Dean said.

"Haven't we already dealt with these before?" Elena sighed, shuddering over the sight of locusts climbing out of the police officer's head once again.

"Three of your more popular Egyptian plagues." Sam nodded.

Dean reached out and picked up the jar that they had containing a few of the locusts that they collected. They were dead now, having been sealed up for a few hours.

"Yeah, but these guys... ate their way out of a cop's melon. I don't quite remember that in the King James." Dean commented on them.

"Meanwhile, a kid named Christopher Birch was shot in the head last month after a vehicle pursuit. Hatch, Gray, and Colfax were the three officers involved, and they all filed the exact same police report." Sam informed them, handing Dean his computer.

"Suspect exited vehicle brandishing a firearm. We were forced to fire." Dean read off.

"Just a kid with no face and a planted gun." Elena said, realizing what Ed had been telling them.

"Bunch of dicks. So they pop the kid, plant the piece." Dean said, shaking his head as he handed the laptop back to Sam.

"Maybe Colfax is right. You know, maybe heaven has a hate-on for bad cops." Sam suggested.

"So we're listening to the guy with the bug in his custard? That's… that's the, uh, the theory you want to go with?" Dean said skeptically and Elena looked between them, wondering if angels could be behind this.

"Dean, angels got to have something to do, right, now that we're post-Apocalypse?" Sam asked.

Dean stood, walking to the kitchenette and opening the fridge to pull out a beer.

"We should call Cas." he suggested as he opened it.

"You're kidding, right?" Sam scoffed, shaking his head. "I tried. It was the first and second and third thing I did, soon as I got topside. Son of a bitch won't answer the phone." Sam said.

Dean glanced at Elena and she shrugged.

"It's worth a try." She said.

"Well then, let's give it a shot." He said, sitting down on the bed. "Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray to Castiel to get his feathery ass down here."

Elena grinned at his prayer.

"You're an idiot." Sam commented.

"Stay positive." Dean said, peeking out of his closed eyes.

"Oh, I am positive." Sam confirmed, making Elena laugh lightly.

"Come on, Cas! Don't be a dick. We got ourselves a... plague-like situation down here, and... do you... do you copy?" Dean said with uncertainty.

"Like I said..." Sam cleared his throat, turning to face them. "… son of a bitch doesn't answer."

Just as he finished speaking, the sound of wings filled the room. Elena and Dean stared up at the newcomer before looking back at Sam.

"He's right behind me, isn't he?" the younger brother said.

Their eyes simply went to look back at the angel. Sam turned to face him with an annoyed look.

"Hello." Castiel greeted them, nodding slightly.

Elena's eyes looked over him, wondering what was different about him. There was something that she couldn't quite place and it was bothering her.

"Hello?" Sam demanded, anger tainting his voice.

"Y-yes?" Cas said questioningly.

"Hello?" he snapped again.

"Uh, that is still the term?" the angel asked with uncertainty.

"I spent all that time trying to get through to you. Dean calls once, and now it's, 'hello'?!" Sam said, looking like he would hit the angel if he wouldn't just hurt himself.

"Yes." Cas said simply, walking forward.

"So, what, you - you like him better or something?" Sam scoffed.

Elena and Dean watched as Cas glanced back at them.

"Dean and I do share a more profound bond."

Elena's eyebrows raised and she looked over at Dean with amusement as he looked taken aback at the claim.

"I wasn't gonna mention it." the angel said.

"What about you and me, Cas? I thought we had something special." Elena said with amusement, finding the situation a little bit funny.

Apparently Cas didn't recognize that she was teasing him.

"As you have Gabriel's grace in you, we will always understand each other better than I can understand Sam and Dean and much better than they can understand. We do have a familiarity with each other that could be considered special." He nodded.

Elena held back a smile as she nodded.

"Thanks, Cas."

"Cas, I think what Sam's trying to say is that... he went to Hell for us." Dean said, getting them back on track. "I mean, he really took one for the team. You remember that? And then he comes back without a clue, and you can't take five friggin' minutes to give him some answers?"

"If I had any answers, I might have responded." Castiel said strongly, turning to face Sam. "But I don't know, Sam. We have no idea who brought you back from the cage... or why."

"So... it wasn't God?" Sam asked.

"No one's even seen God. The whole thing remains mysterious."

"What the hell does that mean?" the younger brother questioned, searching Cas' face for an answer.

"What part of 'I don't know' escapes your understanding?" Cas snapped, sounding frustrated.

"Cas, look, if Sam calls, you answer. Okay? You wing your ass down here, and you tell him, I don't know. Just because we have some sort of a… a bond or whatever..." Dean said.

"You think I came because _you_ called?" Cas interrupted him with an exasperated look.

Dean was taken aback at that.

"I came because of this." he walked to the table where the research was spread out.

"Oh, well, it's nice to know what matters." Dean said sarcastically.

"It does help one to focus." Cas said seriously as he looked through the papers.

"Wait, so… so you and the Halo Patrol, you guys aren't the cause of these killings?" Sam questioned.

"No. But they were committed with one of our weapons. There's only one thing that could have brought this into existence." Cas said.

They all stared at him and he glanced up at them, realizing they wanted more.

"You call it the Staff of Moses."

"The Staff?" Sam asked.

"It was used in a dominance display against the Egyptians, as I recall." The angel said, picking up the jar of locusts.

"Yeah." Dean scoffed, standing up. "That one made the papers."

"B-but I thought the Staff turned, like, a… a river into blood, not one dude." Sam pointed out.

"The weapon isn't being used at full capacity." Castiel said thoughtfully.

"I think we can rule Moses out as a suspect." He decided.

"Well, that's something." Elena said, nodding.

"Okay, but... what is… what is Chuck Heston's disco stick doing down here, anyway? I mean, don't you guys put away your toys?" Dean asked.

"Before the apocalypse, Heaven may have been corrupt, but it was stable. The staff was safely contained." Cas sighed, looking hesitant to admit something. "It's been chaos up there since the war ended. In that confusion, a number of... powerful weapons were... stolen."

"Wait, you… you're saying your nukes are loose?" Dean said, raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so. But you've stumbled onto one of them. We must find the weapon that did this." he said, indicating the jar of locusts.

Then he looked up at them.

"I need your help."

"That's rich. Really." Sam scoffed.

Cas turned to him and grunted angrily before tossing the jar at him.

"Sam, Dean, Elena, my 'people skills' are 'rusty'." He said, doing air quotes with the words much to Elena's amusement.

"Pardon me, but I have spent the last year as a multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent. But believe me, you do not want that weapon down here. Help me find it. Or more people will die."

"All right." Elena said, wanting to reassure him so that the stress in the angel's eyes would go away.

Sam and Dean sighed and nodded as well.

"Okay. Well, if the angels didn't pull the trigger, then that brings us back to motive." Dean said, walking back to his research.

"What?" Cas said, looking confused that they all agreed to help him so quickly.

Apparently he thought it would take more convincing.

"Back to the case. Right now, we got three dead cops. Only thing linking them... is this." Sam said as Dean handed him a newspaper clipping. "Father of slain suspect calls for investigation."

He held it up so that they could all see it.

* * *

Elena looked around when they suddenly appeared in a living room.

"Oh, Cas, a little warning next time. I like Elena's transportation better than yours." Dean grumbled.

"What the... how'd you get in here?!" Darryl Birch demanded, standing up from where he was sitting on the couch.

"Mr. Birch, settle down." Sam said, showing him his FBI badge. "Federal agents."

"But you can't just walk in here!" the man argued.

"Quite a collection you've got there, huh?" Sam said, ignoring him as he gestured to the newspaper clippings spread out on the coffee table that were talking about the three cops' deaths.

"What are you trying to…?"

"Look, we know the truth, all right?" Elena cut him off, trying to sound sympathetic. "Chris didn't have a gun on him when those cops shot him. They set him up."

"Yeah. They're all getting theirs." Darryl nodded.

"And who's giving it to them, Darryl?" Sam asked in an accusing tone.

Darryl stared around at all of them.

"Darryl? Did you kill Toby Gray and the others?" Dean asked plainly.

"Me?! I didn't kill anyone! Look at how they died!" Darryl asked, gesturing to the newspapers.

"You smote them with the Staff of Moses!" Castiel growled, glaring at him.

"The hell kind of Fed are you?" the man asked, looking at the angel with confusion.

"We don't have time for this." he stepped closer to Darryl. "Where is it?"

"Leave my dad alone!" they all turned to see a young boy brandishing a piece of wood in their direction like a gun.

All four of them tilted their heads to the right at the same time, not concerned that the boy was threatening them.

"Is that...?" Elena began.

"Yes." Cas said, his brow furrowed.

"Shouldn't it be bigger?" Sam questioned.

"Yes. It's… it's been sawed off." the angel said with confusion.

"Leave him alone! It wasn't him!" the boy said, looking panicked.

"Aaron, get out of here!" Darryl said to his son.

Castiel turned and pressed two fingers to Darryl's forehead, causing him to fall back onto the sofa unconscious. The other three didn't even flinch.

"What did you do to him?" Aaron demanded.

"It's all right. He's just sleeping." Dean assured him stepping forward.

Aaron brandished the staff at him but Castiel appeared next to him, taking the staff out of his hands easily.

"Cas, take it easy!" Dean admonished him.

Elena looked back at Aaron as he backed away.

"Listen, we're not here to hurt you, okay? But we need to know... where did you get this thing?" Elena asked gently, walking forward.

"Please don't kill my dad. It was me. I did it." Aaron pleaded.

"Okay, nobody's killing anybody. What's your name?" Dean asked, holding his hands up in surrender.

"Aaron. Aaron Birch." He said, his eyes wide.

"Okay, Aaron Birch, where did you get this?" Elena questioned.

"You won't believe me." Aaron said hesitantly, his eyes flashing between them.

"Try me." Dean challenged him.

"It was an angel." The young boy said.

All of their eyes flashed to Cas where he looked up from inspecting the piece of the staff.

"An angel?" Dean questioned.

"Those liars, they killed my brother, and nothing bad even happened to them. It's not fair. So I prayed to God every night he would punish them. God didn't answer. But he did." Aaron explained.

"His name… did he give you a name?" Cas asked, stepping forward.

"No. He just said I could have justice, but I was gonna have to take it myself. He... he gave me the stick." Aaron said.

"He just... gave it to you?" Elena asked skeptically.

He nodded.

"Ah, come on. He didn't just give it to you, did he, Aaron?" Dean guessed.

The kid looked sheepish and shook his head.

"I bought it." he admitted.

"You bought it?" Sam chuckled. "With what? What's your allowance?"

Dean gave him a look.

"What did the angel want for it? What did you give him for it?" Elena asked him.

Aaron looked down.

"My soul." He said.

"You sold your soul to an angel?" Sam said, shocked.

Aaron looked up at them with wide eyes.

"Can that even happen?" Dean asked Cas.

"It's never happened before. An angel's buying souls. That could explain why he cut the staff into pieces." He answered.

"Why?" Sam asked.

"More pieces, more product." Cas said.

"More product? Who is this guy?" Dean snapped, angry.

"We'll find him." Castiel said confidently, reaching out and pressing his fingers to Aaron's forehead. He fell unconscious and Cas caught him, lifting him over his shoulder.

"What did you do that for?" Dean demanded, surprised.

"Portability." Cas said and in the next moment, they were all standing in the motel room again.

Castiel placed a still-unconscious Aaron on the bed as they turned to him.

"Cas, you realize you just kidnapped a kid?" Dean said, staring at the angel.

"If the angel we seek truly bought this boy's soul, when a claim is laid on a living soul, it leaves a mark, a brand." Castiel explained, setting the staff on the bed.

"What, like a… like a shirt tag at camp?" Sam asked.

The angel looked up at him, a lost look on his face.

"I have no idea. But I can read the mark and find the name of the angel that bought the soul." He said.

"How?" Dean asked.

"Well, painfully for him. The reading will be excruciating." He said, pulling his sleeves up.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on." Dean said and Elena was thankful that he stopped the angel.

"Dean." Cas sighed.

"He's a kid, Cas." She said.

"Sam?" Dean said, looking for his help too.

Sam stared at them for a moment before turning to Cas.

"Any permanent damage?"

"What?!" Dean and Elena demanded at the same time, staring at him in disbelief.

"Physically, minimal." Castiel said.

"Oh, well, yeah, then by all means, stick your arm right in there." Dean snapped.

"Dean! If I get the name, I can work a ritual to track the angel down." The angel said frustratedly as he stared at them.

"And I'm all for that. But come on. There's got to be another way." Dean said.

"There is no other way." Castiel said confidently.

"You're gonna torture a kid?" Elena demanded.

"I can't care about that! I don't have the luxury." Cas said before turning to Aaron and pushing his hand into Aaron's chest.

The kid woke up immediately, screaming loudly. Dean started forward to stop the angel but Sam held him back. Elena took Dean's hand, knowing that it was too late to do anything at this point. Aaron's body was lighting up from the inside as Cas concentrated on him. After a few moments, Cas withdrew and the young boy slumped to the bed unconscious. The angel turned to them.

"He'll rest now." He said, rolling his sleeve back down.

"Did you get a name? What is it?" Sam asked.

"I thought he died in the war." Cas sighed, looking confused.

"What, he… he was a… he was a friend or something?" Dean asked.

"A good friend." The angel confirmed and Elena felt sorry for the saddened look on his face.

"Yeah, well, your frat buddy is now moonlighting as a crossroads demon." Dean snapped, not caring about the fact that Cas was long lost friends with the guy.

"Balthazar. I wonder..." Cas trailed off.

"Balthazar?" Elena said, her head snapping up at the name.

"You know him?" Castiel asked, looking at her.

"I saw him on my last visit to heaven. He was in contact with Gabriel before Lucifer killed him." She confirmed.

"So we can find him now, right?" Sam asked.

"Balthazar. Thanks, Castiel." They all turned to see an angel in a suit standing there. "We'll make good use of the name."

He launched forward and attacked Castiel with an angel blade. Elena moved forward but Dean held her back as Cas matched the other angel blow-for-blow.

"And by the way, Raphael says hello." The angel said.

They continued to fight around the room, at some point their angel swords flying out of their hands. Castiel grasped the angel and they grappled around until they jumped through the window by accident. They all ran to the window and watched as they fell three stories onto a car. Not just any car, but Sam's car. Cas slid off of the dented roof and the other angel disappeared.

"My car." Sam said, his eyes wide.

"Okay. Silver lining." Dean nodded with a smirk as Elena let out a soft laugh.

Suddenly Cas disappeared from where he was standing beside the smashed car.

"He's gone." They all turned to see him standing behind them.

"Alright Cas, who was that guy?" Dean demanded, serious again.

"A soldier of Raphael. He must have followed me when I answered your call." Cas admitted as he walked around to the ktichenette.

"Raphael? The archangel? I'm sorry, what's going on here?" Sam asked.

Castiel removed a bowl from the cupboard.

"I can explain later. Right now we have to…"

"No, not later. Now. Stop, all right? Too many angels, Cas! I don't know who's on first, what's on second." Dean said, stopping him from moving.

"What is second?!" Cas demanded.

"Don't start that." Dean warned.

"It is simple: Raphael and his followers, they want him to rule Heaven. I… and many others… the last thing we want is to let him take over. It would be catastrophic." Cas explained.

"You're talking civil war." Sam said.

"Technically, yes. Which is why we have to find Balthazar and his weapons before Raphael does. Whoever has the weapons wins the war." Cas said, walking to the bed and pulling out Sam's weapons bag.

He placed it on the bed and began searching through it.

"Help yourself." Sam scoffed but the angel didn't pay him any mind.

"And what happens if Raphael wins? What does he want?" Elena questioned hesitantly.

Cas pulled out a flask of holy water.

"What he's always wanted… to end the story the way it was written." He said, looking up at them.

"You mean the Apocalypse, the one that we derailed?" Dean asked.

"Yes. That one. Raphael wants to put it back on the rails." Cas nodded.

"Why?" Dean asked.

Cas looked around before looking back at them.

"I need myrrh." He decided.

"Myrrh?" Sam said, confused.

Castiel disappeared from where he was standing.

"Freakin' angels." Dean sighed Elena shot him a look.

They heard a noise and turned to see Cas standing there drawing a circle on the table with chalk.

"Why does Raphael want to bring back all this crap?" Dean demanded.

"He's a traditionalist." Castiel said simply.

"Cas, why didn't you tell us this?" Elena questioned, recognizing that this was probably what changed about Cas.

If he was fighting a civil war in heaven, that meant he was a soldier again. He reminded her of the Castiel that was put under Uriel's charge. The Castiel that wanted to level a town and to kill Anna. Cas sighed and looked down at the table.

"I was ashamed. I expected more from my brothers." He admitted.

Then he snapped out of it, looking up at Dean. He grabbed his arm and held it over the bowl.

"I'm sorry. Now I need your blood."

"Whoa, whoa! Hey!" Dean protested.

Cas sliced his palm open without listening and blood dripped into the bowl.

"Ahh! Why don't you use your own?"

"It wouldn't work. I'm not human." Cas said once he let it go.

Elena took Dean's hand and healed it quickly as Castiel continued what he was doing. They suddenly heard sirens approaching the motel.

"Uh, Cas, how long does this spell take?" Sam said hesitantly.

Castiel held his hand over the table and chanted a few words in Enochian before closing his eyes.

The wailing of the sirens got louder and closer.

"Cas?" Elena said hesitantly.

"Got him. Let's go." he said, opening his eyes.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What about him?" Dean asked, gesturing to Aaron.

They all glanced at the kid.

"Don't you think the police will take him home?" Cas said simply.

* * *

They looked up at the house standing before them as they landed on the dark lawn. It was more like a mansion than a house.

"Huh. I was expecting more Dr. No, less Liberace." Dean commented.

"If I've judged him right, I think that Balthazar has a flair for the dramatics." Elena said as they advanced on the mansion.

"You've judged him right." Castiel confirmed.

* * *

Castiel looked around as he entered an opulent foyer. When he heard a noise, he looked up to see a frog perched on the staircase. He stared at it for a moment before appearing on the stairs. As he walked forward, he heard the sound of loud music coming from a room. When he walked into it, he found that it was mostly empty with flashing lights. The door closed behind him and, carefully, he slid the angel-blade out of his sleeve to ready himself.

"Cas. You're here." He heard a voice say.

He turned to see his brother standing by a piano.

"Balthazar." He said, nodding at him.

"It's so good to see you. He told me you were floating around." Balthazar said, smiling.

"He?" Cas said, his brow furrowing slightly.

"I believe you two have flown together." Balthazar said, gesturing to the body of the angel lying on the floor.

It was the same one that attacked him at the motel. The lights suddenly turned on and the music stopped.

"Oh, you know, the old frog in the throat." The other angel said proudly.

Suddenly a frog jumped out of his mouth and onto the floor, croaking.

"Even I know that that's a bad joke." Cas said, turning to Balthazar. "I grieved your death."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry about that, you know. I wanted them to think, you know, so... they wouldn't come looking for me?" he said, stepping forward.

"What... is all this? What are you doing?" Cas asked as they circled each other.

"Whatever I want." Balthazar shrugged. "This morning I had a ménage à… what's French for twelve?"

"You stole the Staff of Moses?"

"Sure, sure. I stole a lot of things." he confirmed.

"You were a great and honorable soldier. We fought together." Castiel reminded him.

"Yes, too many times to count." Balthazar nodded.

"I know you. You're not some common thief." He said.

"Common? No. Thief? Eh." Balthazar shrugged.

"I need your help." Cas said.

"I know. I've been hearing all about you, and as far as I'm concerned, you and me, Cas, nothing's changed. We're brothers. Of course I want to help you."

"Thank you." he nodded. "I need the weapons."

Balthazar sighed.

"Don't ask that."

"Why take them? Why run away?" Castiel demanded.

"Because I could! What? What? I me… you're the one who made it possible. The footsteps I'm following… they're yours. What you did, stopping the big plan, the prize fight? You did more than rebel. You tore up the whole script and burned the pages for all of us." Balthazar laughed. "It's a new era. No rules, no destiny. Just utter and complete freedom."

"And this is what you do with it?" Castiel demanded.

"Hey, screw it, right? I mean, dad's not coming back. You might as well blow coke and jump on the bed. You proved to me we could do anything, so I'm trying everything. What difference does it make?" the other angel shrugged.

"Of course it makes a diff… it's civil war up there!" Cas yelled.

"I know." Balthazar nodded.

"If we can beat Raphael, we can end this! Just give me the weapons." Castiel said.

Balthazar laughed, shaking his head.

"Do you know what's funny about you? You actually believe that you can stop the fighting. It will never stop. My advice… grab something valuable and fake your own death."

"You've gone insane. Your little holiday is over. Raphael knows you're alive by now." Cas warned him.

"Oh, Raphael can try me anytime. I'm armed." Balthazar shrugged.

Castiel glared at him.

"I'm sorry, Cas. All else aside, I'm really, really happy to see you. Even though you still have that stick up your ass."

Suddenly loud thunder crashed around them that both angels knew was unnatural.

"Was that you?" Balthazar asked.

Castiel shook his head slowly.

"Oh, that's my cue then. Tell, uh, Raphael to bite me." he nodded before disappearing.

* * *

Suddenly three angels appeared in the lawn as thunder crashed once again.

"Watch them. They're all snakes." Raphael warned them before they all walked towards the mansion.

One of the angels, armed with a sword, was patrolling the outside.

"Hey, there." he turned to see Sam standing there holding an angel blade. "Yeah, I got one of those, too." He nodded.

The angel suddenly appeared behind Sam holding the blade to his throat.

"You think you can knife-fight an angel?" he hissed in his ear.

"He can't, I can." Elena said from behind him, holding the blade that Sam passed back to her sneakily.

She stabbed it into the angel's chest and he yelled out as the bright light flowed out of his body. Thunder crashed overhead once again as she sighed and looked at Dean and Sam. They weren't counting Raphael showing up so soon.

* * *

Cas looked around the room when an angel appeared.

"You're making a mistake." He warned him as the angel advanced on him. "Please. There is another way. Brother, please. I don't want to hurt you."

He didn't stop and Castiel threw his blade into the angel's chest, killing him.

"Why won't any of you listen?" He groaned, sadness and frustration in his voice.

Suddenly he was grabbed from behind.

"They don't listen, Castiel, because their hearts are mine." Raphael said, grabbing him by the collar and throwing him through the set of doors into the hallway.

He stalked forward and kicked Cas while he was down, pulling him up to punch him several times. Castiel careened backwards and fell down a few steps. Raphael followed him and kicked him the rest of the way down. Cas stumbled to his feet and turned to see the archangel standing there. He punched him again, causing him to fall to his knees. Then he raised an angel-killing sword high in the air.

"Somehow, I don't think God will be bringing you back this time." he said triumphantly.

Suddenly a body appeared between the two angels. Raphael glared at Elena and she stared back defiantly, refusing to move from her protection of Castiel.

"I am not afraid to kill you as well." he warned her.

"Try it. See how quickly I'm brought back." she snapped.

Raphael raised the blade higher and made to stab it into her chest.

"Hey!" Raphael whirled around and Elena looked to see Balthazar standing there.

"Look at my junk."

The angel held up a glowing crystal.

"No." Raphael growled, holding a hand out.

Elean watched with surprised as his vessel suddenly turned into a pile of salt on the floor.

Balthazar chuckled, lowering the crystal.

"Same thing happened to Lot's wife. Iodize the poor sucker, and your kitchen is stocked for life." he said to Elena.

She smiled hesitantly, relieved that he showed up when he did. She turned and helped Cas to a standing position.

"You came back." Castiel said, ignoring the blood running down his face.

"Well, now Raphael will have to go shopping for a new vessel. Should give me a nice long head start on him. Until next time." Balthazar said, smirking.

"Next time?" Cas said, tilting his head to the side.

Both his and Elena's eyes flickered to behind him.

"No time like the present." Dean said from where he was standing.

Balthazar turned just in time to see him drop a lighter on the circle of holy fire that he was standing right in the middle of.

"Holy fire." The angel growled. "You hairless ape! Release me!"

"First you're taking your marker off of Aaron Birch's soul!" Dean commanded, glaring at him.

"Am I?" Balthazar said, no longer in good humor.

"Sam?!" Dean called.

"Unless you like your wings extra crispy…" Sam uncorked a bottle of holy oil as he walked in. "I'd think about it."

"Castiel, I stood for you in Heaven. Are you gonna let…" Balthazar began.

Elena shifted uncomfortably. Balthazar had helped them more than once.

"I believe... the hairless ape has the floor." Cas said, narrowing his eyes at the other angel.

Balthazar looked around before laughing.

"Very well."

He inhaled deeply, clasping his hands to his forehead and concentrating.

"The boy's debt is cleared. His soul is his own." he finally said.

"Why you buying up human souls, anyway?" Dean demanded.

"In this economy? It's probably the only thing worth buying. Do you have any idea what souls are worth? What power they hold? Now... release me." Balthazar demanded, glaring at him.

"Suck it, ass clown. Nobody said anything…"

Castiel interrupted Dean by reaching out. He lowered the flames with his hand, leaving Balthazar free to run off.

"Cas, what the hell?" Dean demanded.

"My debt to you is cleared." Castiel said to Balthazar.

"Fair enough." he agreed before disappearing.

"Cas, are you out of your mind?!" Dean snapped.

The angel suddenly disappeared.

"Cas?! Oh, friggin' angels! Come on!" Dean yelled as they all turned around to see that they were alone in the house.

* * *

Elena remained in the motel room packing their clothing and stuff up as Dean and Sam were outside rearranging the Impala to make room for Sam's stuff. She heard the sound of wings and turned to see Castiel standing there. She sighed and stopped what she was doing, turning to him.

"I know what you were feeling when I explained the war in heaven. You do not need to take blame upon yourself." He said.

"I could have been there with you this entire time, Cas. What use is this power if I don't use it for good? I could have been by your side helping you." she said.

"It was not your war to fight. It still isn't." he said, looking around the room, anywhere but at her.

"But you wanted to come to me for help." She guessed.

He looked at her, surprised.

"It was you, at the house. You were there. You were going to ask for help so why didn't you?" Elena asked.

"You already had so much of angels asking for you to sacrifice your lives for their cause. I could not ask you to do it once again. It would be unfair of me." he said.

Elena bit her lip and walked to him, taking his hand.

"If you need anything, and I mean anything, we're the first place you come, okay? We'll help you." she said confidently.

Castiel sighed and she saw such deep devastation in his eyes that she'd never seen before.

"Thank you Elena." he agreed before stepping back and disappearing.

* * *

"Yeah, well I didn't realize I had this much stuff back here." She heard Dean saying as she walked up to the Impala with their bags.

"Well, I need some space. Kind of picked up some stuff along the way." Sam said as they fought over room in the trunk.

Dean closed the false bottom on the weapons storage and Sam placed his duffle bag on top before they took the bags from Elena and placed them in there as well. Then Dean closed the trunk and they all walked around the car. Elena made to climb in the backseat but Dean stopped both of them in their tracks.

"Hey, so, uh... are you okay?" he asked hesitantly, looking at Sam.

"Me?" Sam chuckled. "Yeah, I'm great."

"Really? Cause there's been a few times that you got me wondering." Dean said.

"Come again?" Sam asked, taken aback.

"Well, like where were you when Cas was, uh, giving the Holy Taser treatment to that kid?" the older brother said.

"I was right there." Sam shrugged.

"Really? Cause honestly, I felt like we was the only ones raising a card." Dean said, gesturing between him and Elena.

"Right. Uh, I mean, I was with you, but...I don't know. W-we needed the intel." Sam said simply.

"Yeah, I know, but we tortured that kid to get it." Dean pointed out.

Elena remained silent, her suspicions of Sam flaring up.

Sam sighed heavily.

"I just didn't get the feeling that you… that you even cared." Dean shrugged.

"Y… you're wrong." Sam stuttered defensively.

"Hey man, I'm just trying to figure this out because... something's different with you. You know that." Dean said, finally taking Elena's words to heart about her dream with Ruby.

As much as it pained them both to admit, the evil bitch demon might have been right.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know." Sam nodded.

"Really?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. I mean... I've been hunting non-stop for the past year, kind of... kind of on the wild, you know? So, yeah, I suppose I'm a little rough around the edges." Sam said.

"Yeah, I get that. I just don't think I'm getting the whole scoop." Dean said.

Elena felt the same way, like Sam knew something he wasn't telling them.

"You went to hell, Sam. And believe me, I know what that does to a guy." Dean said.

"To you." Sam said quietly.

"What?" Dean said, his eyes narrowing as chills ran down Elena's spine at the younger brother's careless words.

"You know what it does to you. It… it tortured you. You know? I think it still does. But, Dean... I'm okay." Sam shrugged.

"So you're saying, what, that… that you're stronger than me?" Dean scoffed.

Sam chuckled, shaking his head.

"No. Just saying we're different." He said before slapping the roof of the Impala and then climbing into the car.

Elena and Dean's eyes met over the car and she nodded. There was an unspoken agreement now. They would be watching Sam very closely.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope you liked it! Review please!**

**A few things:**

**1. Several characters come back next chapter, including but not limited to Jo, Ellen, and Crowley. **

**2. I am doing the 'Weekend at Bobby's' chapter. I changed my mind.**

**3. PLEASE REVIEW!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, Hollywood17, Nyssandria, xxPaige23xx, DamonSalvatore789, chiwi, Deanwinchesterrocks, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, MaddAlice, imusic247, diehardromantic, RippahGoneWolf, LineChokor, MrsMaeveSalvatoreMikaelson, DrawingMyHeartOut, SwanQueen4055, and the guest for reviewing!**

**To Dark-Supernatural-Angel, about my comment about them being dead 'for now', you'll just have to see. **

**To Deanwinchesterrocks, I still plan on Dean being turned.**

**To Hollywood17, for now I'm not sure about any of that stuff.**

**A few things**

**1. This episode is going to have a kicker that is going to surprise you. It has to do with Crowley, Bobby, Elena, and the deal. As it turns out, Dean was right. Deals with demons always go badly.**

**2. I brought someone from Mystic Falls in to help Elena out. Something that a few of my wonderful reviewers have been asking for for quite some time.**

**3. It was a little bit difficult for me to write this chapter so if it's bad, I apologize. It was hard to put Elena in the chapter while still trying to keep it focused on Bobby and then have the scenes with Sam and Dean and stuff. It was probably the hardest chapter I've written so far.**

**4. Dean and Sam aren't in this chapter much at all. I apologize and I hope you don't mind.**

**5. Outfits are on my profile**

* * *

**Music:**

**Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap - AC/DC **

**I listened to this song on and off throughout the chapter but mainly in these scenes:**

**1. Flashback scene with Bobby and Crowley**

**2. Crossroads scene with Elena, the demon, and *surprise character***

**3. Jo and Elena in the cemetery**

**4. Scene in Marcy's house with monster**

**5. Elena and Bobby conjure Crowley**

**6. Very last scene**

* * *

Elena glanced up as Bobby walked into the study. They were hanging out there for a few days. It was under the guise of researching who could have broken Sam out but really Elena was researching what could be wrong with Sam without anyone but her and Dean knowing. Even Bobby was oblivious for now.

"I think I have a case." He said, holding up a file.

"Well it's about time." Elena said, setting aside her book.

Bobby sighed, leaning against the desk.

"Elena, I need you to stay here and let the boys go out." he said.

Her eyebrows knitted together.

"What's wrong, Bobby?" she asked.

He looked hesitant.

"The reason I wasn't tellin' you about Sam for that year is cause I had my mind on something else. Something big. I didn't want to concern you with it cause I didn't want you two to come out of retirement to help me. But now that you're back, I need your help." He said.

"Anything." Elena agreed, leaning forward.

He sighed before glancing around to make sure that Sam and Dean weren't in earshot before launching into a story.

* * *

**ONE YEAR EARLIER**

"_Been making merry, have we?"_

_Bobby looked up from where he was watching the television where a news reporter was talking about the very last natural disaster before the apocalypse was averted. It had been two days since Sam jumped into the pit and Dean said goodbye to him._

"_Bite me." he snapped to Crowley who was standing in the kitchen._

"_If that's your thing." The demon shrugged, snapping his fingers and causing the TV to switch off. "That Swan dive of Sam's was a thing of beauty. Tens all the way round. Standing ov from the Romanian judge. You should be proud, Bobby. As deaths go, it wasn't too shabby. Cheer up, mate, we just saved the sodding world together. Me, I've been celebrating."_

"_I'd hate to see what you call celebrating." Bobby said, not bothering to ask him what he was doing there._

"_Yes, you would." Crowley agreed._

_Bobby lifted the drink and offered it to Crowley._

"_Drink?" he asked._

_Crowley looked appalled for a moment._

"_No." he said simply._

_Bobby shrugged and poured himself a drink without a care._

"_Let me get this straight… we just 'saved the sodding world together'…" Bobby imitated the demon's accent. "… and you're too good to drink with me?"_

"_Obviously. I doubt that you have my brand." Crowley said simply, walking into the study._

"_What's your poison, your highness?" the hunter scoffed._

_He took a deep breath, messing with his suit._

"_Craig. Aged 30 years at least. I've been drinking it since grade school." He said._

"_Well, I got old rotgut aged 6 days." Bobby commented._

"_Swill like that is gonna burn a hole in your soul… oops sorry, my soul."_

_Bobby's eyes narrowed as his mind caught up with what the demon said._

"_You want to run that by me again?" he demanded._

"_Oh, yes. I sort of… tricked you. Sorry about that but I needed more than Elena's word that she wasn't going to let the boys kill me. A year of protection, I needed a bit more leverage. It's a shame you two didn't ask to read the contract. Did you really think that I would give you back your legs just for that little deal?"_

_Bobby was taken aback._

"_You bastard." He said._

"_Yes well, I'm nothing if not resourceful. But unfortunately because of the deal we made, I had to write a clause in there that the soul was a temporary hold for the purposes of our temporary alliance." Crowley said._

"_Then hold up your end of the deal. Give it back." Bobby growled._

"_Give it back?" he asked. "You really think I don't know my way around a ridiculous clause? Here." _

_The demon snapped his fingers and writing appeared on Bobby's body as he writhed in pain._

"_Paragraph 18, subsection B, which is on you naughty bits… I only have to make best efforts to give you back your soul." Crowley informed him._

"_Meaning what?" the hunter demanded._

"_Meaning…" Crowley made a strained noise. "I'd like to… but I can't."_

"_You son of a…"_

"_Ten years." Crowley cut him off, walking towards him. "… you come to daddy. Until then, I suggest you start drinking the good stuff." The demon suggested._

_Bobby walked around him, glaring at him._

"_I should have known that you would slip something in like this you bastard. You know what you can do? You can rot here till you change your mind." Bobby growled._

"_Why? 'Cause you asked nicely?" he said, smirking._

_Bobby shook his head, always prepared as he turned off the lights._

"_No. Cause I'm going Dateline on your ass." _

_An illuminated devil's trap surrounded Crowley, trapping him in place._

"_I hope that's paint. Really." The demon sighed. "What am I going to do?"_

_Bobby turned away from Bobby, anger pumping through his veins as he walked into the kitchen. Crowley suddenly let out a sharp whistle and a growl filled the kitchen. Bobby grimaced as a wretched smell washed over him._

"_Doggie breath. Bracing, isn't it?" _

_Bobby gulped, unable to see the hellhound. He turned towards the demon slowly._

"_Ball's in your court, Robert. Ten years of living or ten years as Alpo." Crowley offered._

_Bobby glanced back in the kitchen where the growls continued before looking back at Crowley in disgust. The demon smirked and watched as he pulled out a pocket knife. Bobby bent down and scraped the paint off, breaking the trap and setting Crowley free. Then he stood and brandished the knife at Crowley._

"_This ain't over." He growled._

"_I wouldn't have it any other way." Crowley shrugged, walking out. "Happy hunting."_

_He walked off leaving Bobby alone, fuming silently._

* * *

"Bobby! What the hell? You should have called us the second you found out about it!" Elena exclaimed.

"Shh. I didn't need you two to come down here just to help me out with it. I had ten years to figure it out and I finally have a lead. But… I can't do it alone." He said.

Elena shook her head, standing up.

"You should have called us a year ago. We would have come running and you know that. You should have never had to do this alone. It's my fault. I agreed to that deal with Crowley and I'm the one who should have saved you from it." she said, regret filling her voice.

"It ain't your fault, Elena. We both made that deal, together." Bobby said.

"Then we're going to deal with it… together." Elena nodded, putting her hand on his shoulder.

Dean and Sam chose that moment to walk in.

"What's going on?" Sam asked.

Elena turned to face them.

"Bobby has a case… for you guys." She said.

"Wait… for us?" Dean said.

"I'm gonna stay here. Do some research." Elena said, nodding.

"Yeah, I could really use her help. If you need her, she can pop right over." Bobby nodded.

Dean and Sam exchanged a look before they glanced back at Elena.

"All right." they both agreed.

"So, what do you have?" Elena asked, leaning over the desk once Sam and Dean left.

He glanced up at her hesitantly.

"It's not what I have. It's what I need." He said, looking apologetic.

* * *

Elena sighed as she stood in the middle of intersection of the four roads just outside of Sioux Falls. She bent down and made sure that the box was buried right before standing up again and turning in circles.

"Well… you are certainly the last person I'd expect to ever want to make a deal." A sultry voice said from behind her.

Elena turned with narrowed eyes to see a female crossroads demon standing there.

"What can I say? I need something, I get it." she shrugged, walking towards the demon.

"That's close enough, darling. I know your reputation when it comes to my kind." She said, smirking.

"Yeah, I knew you would. That's why I called in a little help." Elena nodded.

The demon turned to see the other female standing there, concentrating.

"What is this?" she hissed.

"Unfortunately for us, you demons are getting a little bit too smart. So we're having to call in reinforcements. Meet my friend, Bonnie. She's a witch." Elena explained.

"You can't trap me with an amateur spellcaster, honey. I'll be going now." The demon snapped.

"Oh no, no you won't." Elena said as Bonnie stepped forward with a smile.

"It worked." She said proudly.

"What worked?" the demon demanded.

"Oh you're trapped. Yeah Bonnie found some spells that mentioned demons in a grimoire that we found from another family of witches. She looked through it and found a way to trap a demon in its meatsuit. Then we found a way to bind it to its captor so that the demon couldn't go anywhere. I'm your captor, by the way." Elena explained.

"You bitch." The demon snapped.

"Yes, that's true." She shrugged, reaching out to grab the demon's arm. "But I'm the bitch who trapped you."

* * *

Dean sighed as he bent over the body, picking through the clothing to see if there was anything there. The large hole in the chest gave him a good view of all of the guy's insides.

"No EMF. Find anything in there?" Sam asked as he walked up.

Dean pulled off his latex glove and dropped it on the ground.

"Yeah, I've got some kind of a claw." He explained, picking it up from the ground.

"What in the hell has a claw like that?" Sam wondered, not remembering ever seeing anything like that before.

"That is a good question." Dean said, pulling out his phone.

He dialed Bobby's number and listened as the phone rang a couple of times. It was strange cause Bobby usually answered the first time. He glanced over at Sam, who shrugged.

"Maybe he's in the can."

* * *

Elena sighed as she walked into the house dragging the demon with her. Bonnie was following, keeping the spell on the demon until they could tie her up. The phone was ringing and Bobby was nowhere to be seen.

"Bobby?" Elena called, walking into the study.

She picked up the phone and put it to her ear.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hey. Where's Bobby." Dean said.

"I don't know… he's…" Elena was interrupted by Bobby walking into the house.

"Dean needs you." she said, holding it out.

The demon opened her mouth to say something and Elena yanked her away, pushing her towards the stairs.

"Yeah?" Bobby said, watching as Elena pushed the demon down into the basement with

"What happened, you fall and can't get up?" Dean said, the smirk prevalent in his voice.

"Hilarious." Bobby said sarcastically. "What's up?"

"We're in Wisconsin." Dean said. "Six bodies, chests cracked wide open. No EMF, no sulfur, no hex bags. We did find this though… hold on.

Bobby heard the sound of scuffling.

"Alright, check your wagon."

Bobby logged onto his computer and saw the image that Dean sent him on his email. He examined the claw with a surprised look.

"That's a new one." He commented.

"Yeah. We need an ID ASAP." Dean agreed. "This thing is on a rampage. Call us as soon as you dig something up."

Bobby sighed and looke around as Elena and Bonnie walked back upstairs.

"Dean, I'm a little busy." He said.

"Well then, kick Bo Derek out of your bathtub. You have Elena there to help you out. Come on. We gotta case here."

Bobby shook his head.

"I'll call you back." he said before hanging up the phone.

Elena looked at him with a questioning look.

"What was it?" she asked.

"Dean and Sam need me to look up stuff on their case. I have to help them out." he said.

"Okay, well you look up stuff for that. We'll look through the grimoires that Bonnie brought to see if there's a way to get the demon to talk." Elena offered.

He glanced at her.

"All right." he agreed.

Elena and Bonnie went up to the guest room to study while Bobby remained downstairs to look through books for the answer to Dean and Sam's problem. When he didn't find anything after an hour of looking, he slammed one of the books shut with frustration, knowing that he would need another book.

"Balls!" he cursed.

Elena came out of the kitchen where she was getting food for her and Bonnie.

"You okay?" she asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I just gotta go get a book from the damn library." He grumbled, standing and grabbing his keys.

"Okay. We'll be here." Elena said.

* * *

Elena walked downstairs the next morning to find Bobby splayed across the desk fast asleep. She sighed and, after making coffee with a basic breakfast, she brought him a plate and a cup.

"Wake up." She said, shaking him.

He woke up with a grunt and looked up at her.

"Bonnie and I found something. What about you?" she asked as the witch walked into the room.

"Yeah, I figured it out. I gotta call Dean." He said, grabbing for his phone as he sucked down the coffee.

"You're hunting a Lamia." He said as soon as Dean answered.

"Come again?" Dean said.

"It's a monster." He said simply.

"Juices hearts, chugs the blood." Bobby sighed. "Never heard of one popping up outside of Greece though."

"Yeah, well, looks like this freak is immigrating. It's snacking on cheese heads." Dean explained. "How do we gank it?"

Bobby yawned and Elena stared at him sympathetically, knowing that he was exhausted.

"There's a couple of ways. Easiest is a silver knife blessed by a padre." He said.

"Gotcha." Dean said before hanging up the phone.

"You're welcome." Bobby said, looking at the phone before hanging up and facing the girls.

"What did you find?" he asked.

"Well there are a few myths on how to put a demon down but we found one that seems pretty legitimate. It was mentioned in several grimoires." Elena explained.

Bonnie walked forward with her and they laid the books out on Bobby's desk open to the pages.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's pretty crazy but I think it'll work. All we have to do is figure out the demon's name. Her real, human name." Bonnie explained.

"Why is that?" the older hunter asked, looking between them.

"Because we need to find her bones." Elena said simply.

Bonnie pointed to a passage and Bobby squinted as he read it. Then his eyes lit up. He walked around the desk and grabbed Elena's cheeks, kissing her forehead. Then he did the same to Bonnie for good measure.

"You two are geniuses." He said.

"Thanks." Elena said, grinning proudly along with Bonnie.

"Now you just need to get her name." Bonnie nodded.

"I got it." Bobby said simply.

"I'll take Bonnie home." Elena said.

They gathered up Bonnie's stuff as yells of pain emanated from downstairs. They tried to ignore them. Bonnie grabbed Elena's hand and they transported away to Mystic Falls.

"Thank you for helping us Bonnie. I really appreciate it." she said, hugging her friend as they stood in front of the Bennett house.

"I was glad to do it." Bonnie said, hugging her back. "Let me know if you need anymore help, we're all here for you."

"I will." Elena nodded with a smile before disappearing.

When she reappeared in the house, Bobby was walking into the study.

"Gabriella Concha. She's from a small town, Dumas, Texas." He said, setting an empty flask that previously held holy water on the desk.

Then he handed her dagger back to her, allowing Elena to slide it into her belt.

"I'll look it up." Elena nodded.

"You know, this whole bones thing…" Bobby began.

"It's how we get Crowley too. We just need leverage from her to get his real name. Threatening her with death by knife isn't gonna be enough." Elena confirmed.

"Exactly what I was thinking." Bobby nodded.

* * *

As Elena looked up Gabriella Concha, she heard a knock on the door. She looked at Bobby with a questioning look.

"Expecting anyone?" she asked.

"Not that I know of." He said, shrugging.

She got up and walked to the door, opening it to reveal Jo and Ellen.

"Hey!" she said, smiling at them.

"What the… why are you here?" Ellen asked as they entered.

"Helping Bobby out with research." Elena explained, leading them back into the study.

"But I thought you were in Mystic Falls living up the normal life." Jo pointed out.

Elena glanced at Bobby, who stood to give Ellen a hug.

"He hasn't told you? We're back in." Elena informed them.

"Oh, is it cause Sam's back?" Ellen asked.

"Who else knew about Sam before we did?" she demanded, looking annoyed.

"It was for good reason, Elena." Ellen said comfortingly, patting her arm.

"We came by because we were in the area and we're taking a break for a few days. Can we help?" Jo asked.

Elena looked at Bobby, shrugging.

"Yeah, you can help." He grumbled.

"What are you working on?" Ellen asked, plopping down in a chair.

He exchanged a wary look with Elena.

"I might have accidentally made a deal with a demon." He admitted.

Jo and Ellen looked between them with wide eyes.

"How do you accidentally make a deal with a demon?" Ellen demanded.

"Well he didn't accidentally make the deal. He accidentally sold his soul in the middle of purposefully making a deal." Elena reworded his statement.

"Only you, Bobby Singer, could be such an idiot." Ellen snapped.

Elena sat down and continued to research as Bobby told them the full story.

"So how can we help?" Jo asked quickly, keeping her mother from hurling more insults to Bobby.

"I just found out where the demon from downstairs is buried and I am going to get her bones." Elena said, standing up.

"I'll come with you." Jo volunteered.

"I'll stay here and make sure that no more demon deals are made." Ellen said, narrowing her eyes between Bobby and Elena, both of whom looked guilty.

* * *

"So, how are things with Sam?" Jo asked as they walked through the cemetery, both girls holding shovels that were slung over their shoulders.

"They're… strange. He's just not the same." Elena admitted.

"Well he was in hell for at least a little while, right? I mean, Dean wasn't the same when he came out of hell. I guess that had something to do with meeting you but… I think you just have to let him adjust. Even a year may not be enough." Jo said.

"We just want to make sure he's all right and that's hard to do without knowing all of the details of his year without us." Elena explained.

"Yeah, I get it. We didn't see him barely at all. I wish I could help you." Jo said.

"Don't worry about it. Here we go." Elena said, gesturing to a gravestone with her flashlight.

"Gabriella Concha." Jo sighed, staring at it.

"Let's get digging, I guess." Elena muttered, pulling her shovel off of her shoulder.

They both began digging, trading stories of the past year back and forth.

"Mom is thinking about quitting hunting." Jo said.

"What?" Elena asked, surprised.

"Yeah, she wants to build another Roadhouse-type place. Hunting just isn't her thing as much as having a safe haven for hunters is." The blonde explained as they dug.

"What are you going to do, if she does quit hunting?" Elena asked, leaning on her shovel.

Jo inhaled deeply and shrugged.

"I dunno. I want to keep hunting but… I don't wanna do it alone, you know? It's not like I can't, I can. But it's not as… it's just not the same." She said.

"I've never hunted by myself, I wouldn't know." Elena said.

Jo nodded.

"It's just sort of… lonely." She explained.

Elena got a sudden idea as they continued digging.

"How about, if your mom does quit, you and I hunt together sometimes?" she suggested.

"What, us? Two young females out hunting together?" Jo said, smirking.

"Why not? We're both badass. We can both kill monsters. It won't be permanent cause I have to be around the boys a lot but yeah, we could do it sometimes." Elena nodded.

Jo stared at her for a moment.

"That actually sounds great." She said.

Elena grinned and lifted her shovel, burying it in the ground only to hear a thump. They both looked down and sighed.

They stood to the edge and pulled the coffin open at the same time.

"Let's bag 'em up." Elena said as they looked down at the bones.

* * *

Bobby and Ellen looked up as they walked in.

"You got 'em?" Bobby asked.

Elena held up the bag.

"Yep." She confirmed.

"I like that zapping from place to place thing. It makes me wish I was an angel." Jo commented.

"It does come in handy." Elena agreed.

"Hey, I'm still here!" they all heard a voice yell.

They glanced at the stairs.

"I guess she's impatient to tell us what we want to know." Bobby said.

"You go downstairs. We'll keep researching." Ellen offered, gesturing between herself and Jo.

Elena walked behind Bobby downstairs to the basement.

"Hey there, cranky. You were gone so long, I just assumed alcoholic coma." The demon said before catching sight of Elena.

Her eyes narrowed as she sat back against the chair where she was chained in the middle of a devils' trap.

"Where were we?" Bobby asked.

"Your soul." She purred, smirking at him.

"Right. Talk." He said.

"Look at you, all in a rush. Foreplay…" she crossed her legs seductively. "…gets you more play."

"I want Crowley's name. His real name, back when he was flesh and blood." Bobby said, ignoring her attempt to stall.

"Does tying up demons in your basement make you feel better about that time that you killed your wife?" the demon said.

Elena rolled her eyes and walked to the demon, opening the canvas bag.

"What's that?" she demanded.

"You don't recognize them? They're yours." Elena said, smirking as she backed away and placed the bag in a large metal tub.

While she did so, Bobby lit up a flamethrower.

"It won't work. It's a myth." The demon said too quickly and with too much panic to be telling the truth.

"Then you got nothing to worry about." Bobby said, looking at the flame.

He pointed the flames just over the metal tub and the demon screamed in pain as her shoulder lit up with red burns. Then Bobby lowered the flamethrower and stared at her expectantly.

"I can't." the demon said, gasping in pain.

Elena watched as Bobby made the flames go into the tub again. The demon screamed loudly as the red burns moved across her chest. He lowered it again and stared at her.

"You don't know what he'll do to me." she said through gritted teeth.

"Right now you better worry about him." Elena said, cocking her head to Bobby.

"You don't get it. He's the King." She choked out.

Bobby burned her again, unimpressed.

"King of the Crossroads. I've heard the speech." He said.

"No." the demon groaned. "King of Hell."

Elena and Bobby stared at her with wide eyes, this information brand new. Suddenly the doorbell rang once, then again a few moments later. Bobby blew out the flame and turned to Elena.

"You gonna get that or what?" the demon asked, relieved that he would be distracted from torturing her.

* * *

Elena followed Bobby as he walked upstairs. She remained behind in the study as he answered the door.

"Bobby Singer. How long have we been neighbors?" she heard a cheery female voice said.

Her, Jo, and Ellen exchanged questioning glances before getting up and walking to peek around the corner. They caught sight of a pretty, grinning blonde woman standing on the porch holding a covered dish.

"Six months?" Bobby guessed.

"Well, don't you think it's time you welcomed me to the neighborhood?" the woman asked, holding out the dish to Bobby as she uncovered it. "My famous ginger peach cobbler."

He looked at it with uncertainty before looking back up at her.

"Take a whiff. Seriously, I'm a genius." She said.

Bobby sniffed, smiling at her. She smiled back, looking thrilled. Suddenly the demon downstairs began screaming for help and Elena glanced back with a grimace.

"It's stupid horror flicks. Guilty pleasure." Bobby said quickly.

"I love scary movies. Hey have you seen Drag Me To Hell?" the woman asked.

Elena fought back a snort at the irony of her question as there was an awkward pause between the two.

"Trying to avoid it." Bobby admitted.

"But it's fantastic." She took a deep breath. "Saturday, seven o'clock, my house. I'll fix you dinner and I'll whip up a batch of my famous white chocolate popcorn and we'll watch it. Deal?"

Bobby looked down with uncertainty and Elena felt the need to cut in and tell her that he would be there.

"That sounds super, Marcy, but uh…"

Elena finally jumped out, walking forward.

"He'll be there." she said, not even caring that it looked like she was eavesdropping.

Marcy looked at her with surprise as Bobby stared back at her.

"He has nothing else to do, after all." Elena said confidently.

Then she looked at the woman.

"I'm Elena, Bobby's niece." She said, holding out her hand and lying easily.

"I'm Marcy. It's so nice to meet some of Bobby's family." She said with a smile, looking really happy to meet Elena.

"I'll just go." she said after shaking Elena's hand. "Um, hey, one other thing. Uh, my wood chipper… it's a piece of crap, you know. It just broke down on me and… and I hear that you're quite handy. Maybe you could come over and take a look. You know, just whenever…" Marcy said hopefully.

Elena smiled at the cuteness at the whole situation.

"Yeah. I'll see what I can do." Bobby nodded, finally getting his voice back.

"Okay." The woman said, smiling with a pleased look.

Bobby stared at her before offering her his hand.

"Well, okay…" Marcy took his hand and held onto it for a moment. "… okay, I'll see you soon. It was nice to meet you, Elena."

She waved goodbye and turned to walk off, throwing another smile at him before walking off of the porch. Bobby closed the door and looked at Elena.

"What the hell was that for?" he grumbled.

"You can thank me later." She said simply, turning to walk off.

Unfortunately, Elena missed the small smile that appeared on his face once she walked off.

* * *

She walked down to the basement with him again, both of them focused on getting information on Crowley once again.

"Aww. She sounds nice." The demon crooned, smirking at Bobby.

He walked to the flamethrower, ignoring her.

"Are you going to make sweet love to her before you stab her to death, Bobby?"

He lit the flame.

"That is your usual thing, right?"

He aimed the flame at the metal tub and she began screaming again.

I want Crowley's name now!" he yelled.

She continued to scream as her flesh blistered and burned.

"Crowley's name!" Bobby shouted.

"Okay, okay." She whimpered.

He withdrew the flame from the tub and they stared at her, Elena's arms crossed over her chest.

"MacLeod. Fergus MacLeod."

They stared at her skeptically.

"I swear. We call him Lucky the Leprechaun behind his back." she sighed, leaning forward with a grimace.

"MacLeod's Scottish, Einstein." Bobby snapped.

"You got what you want, now send me back." the demon said pleadingly.

Elena glanced over at Bobby and he nodded. She walked to the shelf and pulled off a can of lighter fluid. Then she poured it into the tub.

"No!" the demon screamed. "We had a deal!"

"I gave it my best effort." Bobby shot back.

The crossroads demon screamed as loud as she could as he torched the items in the tub. Elena and Bobby watched with impassive faces as the room lit up with an orange glow from the flames.

* * *

Bobby was bent over a map of Scotland while Elena and Jo were in the kitchen making dinner and Ellen was looking up the MacLeod family tree. The phone suddenly rang and Bobby walked to his line-up of phones on the wall and answered one.

"Yeah, Garth, what do you got?" he asked, listening to the hunter's explanation. "Never heard of a vamp doin' that. It doesn't sound like our kind of thing. Better drop a dime to the FBI."

He hung up the phone and placed it back on the wall. Before he could walk away, another phone labeled **FBI Tom Willis **rang. He picked it up.

"Willis, FBI." He said into it once he picked it up as Elena and Jo walked into the room holding plates of chicken and vegetables.

"No, Garth, not me, the FBI. The real FBI! How are you still alive?" Bobby sighed, shaking his head as the three women laughed.

As they all sat down, eating together, they heard a hand slamming down on the door. Bobby sighed and stood walking to the door to open it.

"Oh, good, you're home! Listen. You gotta help me bury a body." Rufus said once he opened the door, looking relieved.

Bobby stared in disbelief before rolling his eyes.

"Why'd you bring it here?" he asked as they walked around the house to the back where Rufus parked.

"The law is on my tail! What was your guess?" Rufus sighed.

Bobby looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What? They got lucky." The other hunter shrugged.

"Yeah, or you're getting slow." Bobby grumbled.

"Yeah, I'm getting slow… says mister sits on his ass all day taking calls." Rufus shot back as they reached his truck.

Rufus lowered the tailgate and pulled the tarp off of the body of a woman.

"Vamp, shifter… what?" Bobby questioned.

"None of the above." He pulled the lips up to explose the teeth and looked over at Bobby.

"Okami?" Bobby said, shocked. "Where'd you shiv it?"

"Get this. Billings." Rufus said, closing the mouth.

"The only time I ever saw one of these was in Japan." Bobby sighed.

"Duh. No one's ever seen one of these except in Japan." Rufus nodded.

"For what it's worth, Sam and Dean are tracking a Lamia in Wisconsin." Bobby informed him.

"Get out. I thought they never leave Greece." Rufus breathed.

Bobby shook his head slightly, feeling the exact same as the other hunter.

"Monsters lately. Is it me, or is it weird?" he said.

"Yeah well, it's definitely something." Rufus nodded, pondering his words.

Then his head snapped to Bobby.

"So, you got a shovel?"

* * *

"So the son of a bitch's name is Fergus McCloud?" Rufus asked as they refilled the hole with the Okami's body in it.

"That's the son of a bitch's name." Bobby nodded.

"Where are you gonna look?" the other hunter asked.

Bobby rested on his shovel as he looked at Rufus.

"Scotland. Crowley let slip that he likes Craig. It's, uh…"

"It's Scotch. Only made and sold in a tiny area on the north tip of Caithness county. It's peaty and sharp, with a long finish of citrus and tobacco notes." Rufus said, raking dirt over the hole.

Bobby stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, what? What am I, a heathen?" Rufus threw out his arms. "I know what Craig is."

"Well, I got a hunch that that's where Crowley lived and died back when he was a human, a few hundred years before he got the big squeeze in hell and came out a demon." Bobby sighed.

"You know I've got contacts over there." Rufus paused. "I could make a few calls."

"Well, I ain't askin' for no help." Bobby growled, already feeling like too many people were helping him.

"I ain't askin' for your permission." Rufus shot back, resting on his rake.

* * *

Elena, Jo, and Ellen were all watching TV in the study while Bobby was in the kitchen about to cut himself a piece of cobbler. He was interrupted by the phone ringing.

"Yeah." He said gruffly.

"What's another way to kill a Lamia?" Dean's voice came over the other end, panicked.

"Well, what happened to the silver knife blessed by a priest?" Bobby sighed.

"That didn't pan out. What's plan B?" Dean said.

Bobby heard a crash followed by a grunt of Dean's name from Sam. He walked into the study and began looking through a book as the three woman looked at him questioningly. Suddenly loud knocking was heard from the door.

"Police!" a voice announced.

"Balls!" Bobby cursed.

"Come on Bobby, get the lead out!" Dean urged him as Elena walked towards the door.

"Where are you?" Bobby asked.

"In a church. In a rectory." Dean explained.

"Is there a kitchen?" he asked, looking through the book.

"Yeah." Dean said.

"Bobby!" Elena called from the door.

"Find salt… and rosemary." He said, walking towards the door.

Elena was standing there looking out. Sheriff Jody Mills was standing there with a man in a suit. Elena glanced back at Bobby with a hesitant look.

"Mr. Singer. I'm Agent Adams." He pulled out his FBI badge. "I believe you know Sheriff Mills."

Bobby held up his hand as the phone was still against his ear.

"My mom. Just a sec." he murmured.

"Rosemary!" Dean announced as a particularly loud growl came over the phone. "I got it!"

Agent Adams and Jody both followed him and Elena into the house. Jo and Ellen looked up at the newcomers with questioning looks.

"Great, great. Now blend the herbs…" Bobby said. "…saute over a high heat… cook well."

After a clatter, he heard screams emanating from the phone.

"Sammy!" Dean yelled.

Bobby heard a lighter click and then, "fire in the hole!"

"Okay. Great. Great. Enjoy the roast, Mom." bobby said, hanging up the phone and turning to face the agent and the sheriff.

"Have you seen this man? Rufus Turner, aka Luther Vandros, aka Ruben Studdard." Agent Adams asked, holding up a sketch of Rufus.

"No, I've never seen that dick." Bobby denied.

"How do you know he's a dick?" Adams asked, looking suspicious.

"Lucky guess." He shrugged.

Adams looked over at the women, holding the sketch up. They all shook their heads.

"Who are these ladies, Mr. Singer?" the agent asked.

"We're family." Elena spoke up.

"Yep, I'm Bobby's sister and these here are my daughters." Ellen said.

"And none of you have seen this man?" Adams asked skeptically.

They all shook their heads.

"Funny. 'Cause I got a couple of guys working the highway said they saw him pull in here. Carrying a body." He said.

"Well, that's ridiculous. Look, it's a workday, I gotta…" Bobby said.

"I just want to take a look around." Adams interrupted him.

"You got a warrant, sonny?" Bobby asked, stepping forward.

Adams walked forward to get in his face.

"Well, do I need one, sir?"

They stared at each other with narrowed eyes for a few moments.

Sheriff Mills rolled her eyes and stepped forward, patting them both on the chest.

"Okay fellas, put the rulers away. Zip up." She said, making the other three females smirk.

Jody looked at Adams, talking to him.

"Look, Bobby here is a kind of a crank. And he ain't what you call a fan of big brother, but me and him… how long I been arresting you now? Ten years?"

"Thereabouts." Bobby agreed.

"Yeah, we got a history, so... what do you say just let me scope the place out? That okay? You could just wait outside." Sheriff Mills offered.

He glanced at her before nodding and heading for the door.

"Five minutes." He said.

They all watched Agent Adams with bated breath. Mills turned to Bobby as soon as he was gone.

"Why did you send him outside?" Bobby demanded.

"Cause I didn't think you'd want him in here." Jody shot back.

"I don't. I've got a body in the basement." He hissed.

"My point." She nodded without batting a lash.

"Yeah, but I've got another body buried in the yard." He said desperately.

Her eyes got wide all of the sudden.

"Damn it." she ran to the window to peek out as everyone watched. "He's not there."

Bobby let out an irritated sigh.

"Balls!"

The Sheriff and Bobby walked outside to find the agent quickly as they could. He appeared around the corner.

"Mr. Singer, come with me, please." He requested.

They exchanged a look and then followed him. He stopped in front of a now empty hole where the Okami was buried before. Bobby grimaced slightly before controlling his face.

"Do you mind explaining this?" Agent Adams asked.

"What, you never had a septic tank explode on you? I got it pretty well cleaned up, but watch where you step." Bobby warned him.

The FBI man hesitated before checking the bottoms of his shoes.

* * *

"Get back here!" Bobby growled.

The agent and sheriff were gone but the situation was bad since the Okami escaped from the hole.

"Get back? I'm two states over, Bobby. I can't." Rufus said.

"The Okami ain't dead." Bobby snapped.

"Of course it is." Rufus scoffed.

"Did you use a bamboo dagger?" Bobby asked as he looked through his various knives in a black duffle bag.

"Yeah." Rufus said.

"Blessed by a Shinto priest?" Bobby asked, putting the phone on speaker so that he could walk to his desk.

Elena and the Harvelles were all perched around the room waiting to be told what to do.

"I'm not an imbecile, Bobby." Rufus scoffed over the phone.

"Did you stab it seven times?" Bobby questioned.

There was a lengthy pause and they all exchanged an exasperated look.

"Five times." Rufus finally said.

"It's seven!" Bobby sighed.

"No, I'm pretty sure it's five."

"Well, clearly it's seven times." Bobby snapped back. "The damn hole is empty. What was it feeding on when you found it?"

"Single white females while they slept." Rufus explained.

Bobby exchanged a panicked look with Elena.

* * *

Marcy yawned tiredly, walking to the front door and locking it just after she readied herself for bed. She was in her nightgown with a fuzzy robe over it. When she turned, she let out a scream at seeing Elena and Bobby standing there.

"Where's your bedroom?" Bobby asked.

She pointed the way, her hand shaking. Elena and Bobby turned to run down the hall, Bobby shoving the door open. Elena checked under the bed as he looked in the closet.

"Bobby, I'm trying to keep my cool but, what are you doing in my house with your niece and a shotgun?" Marcy asked with uncertainty.

Bobby stopped looking for a moment to face her.

"Have you seen anything… weird?

She raised her eyebrows.

"You mean besides you?" she asked.

He shrugged as they both stared at her. Her eyes wandered up to the ceiling and she gasped. Bobby and Elena followed her gaze just in time to see the Okami launch at Bobby with a shriek. She wrestled with Bobby for a moment. Elena ran forward but was taken by surprise and thrown backwards. The Okami suddenly lifted Bobby and threw him through the window outside. Marcy screamed and the Okami hissed at her before folloiwng him out. He was just getting up when she launched a him and knocked him back down. Elena leapt out of the window and ripped the creature off of him. It turned and leapt on Elena, knocking her to the ground. Before she could get the upper hand, the monster bent down and her teeth sank into Elenas' throat.

She screamed loudly as her skin ripped underneath the Okami's teeth. A shot sounded and the Okami growled, pulling away to turn to Bobby. She jumped off of Elena and launched at Bobby once again, throwing him into the woodchipper and his hand flew out and switched it on. Elena winced and put her hand to her throat where blood was leaking out. Dazedly, she pushed herself to her feet just as the Okami pressed Bobby towards the blades to the working woodchipper.

"Bobby, no! Look out!" Marcy screamed as she ran up.

Elena stumbled forward and seized the Okami by the hair, ripping her backwards. Bobby slid out from underneath her just as Elena reared back and shoved the Okami into the woodchipper. Blood splattered both of them as the creature went through the blades, her body shredding into pieces. Once the body was completely destroyed, Bobby reached out and switched off the woodchipper. They turned to face Marcy, Elena's hand pressed to her neck to staunch the flow of blood until she could get enough energy back to heal herself.

"I, uh… I thought your chipper was broke." Bobby breathed.

Marcy was covered in blood because she'd been standing right at the other end of the machine where most of the Okami came out.

"I just said that to get you over here." She said in a high-pitched voice.

"Oh." Bobby paused awkwardly. "Well, I guess I could come over for dinner and that movie on Friday. Might be fun."

"I don't think so." Marcy said, looking terrified.

Elena looked at Bobby sympathetically as he nodded with an understanding look on his face.

"Story of my life."

* * *

"You're still alive, huh?" Rufus said over the phone.

"Don't act so surprised." Bobby snapped back.

They were all sitting in the kitchen. Bobby was on the phone and Elena was washing the blood off of her neck after healing herself.

"How about Godzilla?" Rufus asked.

"Put her down." Bobby said.

"So you just happened to have a bamboo dagger blessed by a Shinto priest laying around?" Rufus scoffed.

"Wood chipper." Bobby replied, looking at Elena with a flash of amusement in his eyes.

"Oh, okey dokey. Wood chipper, that… that pretty much trumps everything." Rufus acknowledged.

Bobby nodded.

"Look, listen, Bobby, thank you. I screwed up." Rufus sighed.

"Forget it. I figure I still owe you more than you owe me." Bobby replied

Rufus remained silent, taken aback by Bobby's words.

"Alrighty, then add one more thing to the list. I got a lead on your boy Crowley." He said.

Bobby snapped his fingers and Ellen handed him a pen and a piece of paper.

"AKA Fergus Roderick MacLeod. Born in Canisbay, Scotland, 1661." Rufus informed him.

"Great. I don't know what that's gonna get me." Bobby said, writing it down as he put Rufus on speaker.

"Alright. Well, then, behind door number 2, Bob, Crowley had a son."

Bobby looked up at Elena with a slight smile as she looked happy at the new developments.

"Did he now?" Bobby said.

"Yeah, by the name of Gavin. Moved across the pond when his parents bit it. Captained a trading ship that went down in Massachusetts in 1723. Couple of Cousteau wannabes found the wreck about 30 years ago." Rufus explained.

"They fish out his bones?" Bobby asked.

"No. No. They did find his signet ring though. It's part of the "Treasures from the Deep" exhibit at the Maritime Museum at Andover." Rufus said.

"I need that ring." Bobby said.

Oooh. Are you, um… you askin' for my help, Bob?" Rufus said teasingly.

Bobby glared at the wall as if he wished he could strangle Rufus.

"Bobby?" Rufus asked, obviously amused.

"I'm asking for a ring. And I'd appreciate your…" Bobby made a face. "…help getting it."

Rufus chuckled, making the three women laugh as well.

"I'm way ahead of you, brother. I'm headed for Andover now. I should be there about midnight." He said.

"All right. Call me when you have it. Er, thanks, Rufus." Bobby said before haning up.

"You're, um... you're thinking hostage exchange, aren't you? I mean, you get the ring, you can summon Junior's ghost. Get the ghost, you can swap Crowley his son for your soul." Ellen said.

"Something like that." Bobby nodded.

"Let's hope that works out." Elena commented.

Jo and Ellen were asleep up in the guest room and Elena and Bobby were still downstairs. Elena was sitting at the table reading a book while sipping at a soda and munching on chips. Bobby was about to cut a slice of cobbler when his cell phone rang. Elena glanced up at him as he checked the caller ID.

"Dean. You alright?" Bobby asked once he answered.

Elena perked up and he walked to the table to set the phone in the middle and put it on speaker.

"Yeah. Yeah, the Lamia grilled up fine." Dean said.

Both Elena and Bobby could sense that something was wrong. She knew exactly what it was and knew that Dean felt that it was time to bring their concerns to Bobby.

"I sense a but coming on." the older hunter said hesitantly.

"Is Elena there?" Dean asked.

"I'm here." She said.

There was a moment of silence.

"It's Sam, Bobby." he sighed. "He's just… he's different. You know, I get it. You go through something like that and… and you change, but… something's not right to me."

Elena bit her lip and looked up at Bobby.

"He's right, Bobby." She said softly.

Suddenly the other line beeped and Bobby looked down, checking the caller ID. It was Rufus.

"Dean…" Bobby began.

"I got a few questions… about that year. You saw him and we didn't." Dean said miserably and Elena wanted to be with him in that moment but she knew that helping Bobby was more important right now.

"Dean. I got another call." Bobby said.

"You what?" Dean said, sounding frustrated.

"Just hang on." he said. "I got take this. It's important."

Dean let out a humorless laugh.

"More important than Sam?"

Bobby sighed and switched the calls over. The first thing they heard was sirens.

"Rufus?" Bobby said.

"The good news is I snagged the ring, Bobby." The other hunter said. "However..."

"Tell me that ain't…" Bobby sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Three guesses and one of them – it ain't the paramedics."

Bobby and Elena listened helplessly.

"Listen, Bobby. Bobby, I gotta stash this ring." Rufus said desperately.

"Well, don't swallow it." Bobby said sarcastically.

There was a long pause.

"Right! I'm swallowing it, Bobby!"

Elena watched the phone with wide eyes.

"Don't swallow it!" Bobby said louder.

They heard the distinct sound of swallowing before Rufus sighed.

"Damn it." Bobby growled.

"Oh, hell." Rufus cursed.

"Hands where I can see them!" A voice yelled over the phone.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! That is unnecessary force! I know my rights!" They heard Rufus yelling back.

Bobby hung up the call and switched back over to Dean.

"Still there, Dean?" he asked.

"Bobby, what the hell?" Dean demanded.

He glared at the phone, annoyed.

"I, uh – sorry."

"You know you are the one person that I can talk to about this stuff, you and Elena. About Sam... about what brought him back and what the hell is wrong with him. I mean I don't… I don't even know which way is up right now."

Elena sighed sadly at the devastation in his voice.

"Bobby?" He said at the pause.

Elena looked up to see Bobby staring off into the distance.

"Hello? Elena?"

"I… I hear you, son. I… it just ain't a good time." Bobby sighed.

"Yeah, okay. You know what…" Dean said, sounding hardened and emotionless all of the sudden. "… forget it. I mean I'm baring my soul like a freaking girl here and, uh, and you've got stuff to do. So that is – that's fine. That's fine but, seriously, a little selfish."

Elena's eyes widened as she looked at the phone. Dean didn't know what Bobby was going through but he still didn't need to talk to the poor guy like that.

"Not all about you." Dean added.

Bobby's face suddenly became angry.

"Where's your brother?" he growled.

"Outside." Dean said uncertainly after a moment.

"Get him." Bobby snapped before standing to pour himself a drink. Elena sat back and listened as Dean fetched Sam.

"You're on speaker, Bobby." Dean said, unsure of what was going on.

Bobby sat back at the table and glared at the thing.

"Sam. Dean. I love you like my own. I do. But sometimes… sometimes… you two are the whiniest, most self-absorbed sons of bitches I ever met!" he snapped, his anger and frustration finally letting loose as he'd been storing it up for the past few days.

"I'm selfish? Me? I do everything for you! Everything! You need some lores scrounged up, you need your asses pulled out of the fire, you need someone to bitch to about each other! You call me and I come through every damn time! And what do I get for it? Jack with a side of squat!" He yelled.

Elena was going to tell him to be quieter for Jo and Ellen's sake but she didn't want to interrupt him because of the livid look on his face.

"Bobby…" Dean sighed.

"Do I sound like I'm done?" Bobby demanded and Dean fell silent.

"Now look. I know you've got issues. God knows I know. But I got a news flash for you. You ain't the center of the universe! Now, I been keeping this from both of you for a reason but it's time you know. I kept Elena behind to help me out, not with research, but with getting my damn soul back from Crowley because that son of a bitch stole it from me without my knowledge in that deal. And don't you blame Elena for not telling you cause I told her not to. Don't you dare get mad at us for making the deal neither cause that's part of the reason that we're apocalypse free for now. But Crowley owns my soul! And the meter is running! And I will be damned if I'm going to sit around and… and be damned! So how about you two sack up and help me for once?"

Elena remained silent as nothing came from other end of the phone.

"Bobby, all… all you got to do is ask." Sam finally said.

"Anything you need... we're there." Dean added.

Elena smiled slightly, knowing that the boys would come through for their father figure.

* * *

Bobby sighed as he poured himself a drink. It had been a whole day since he lectured the boys and Elena was off as well as the Harvelles. He was alone for the first time in a few days. So then, of course, a knock sounded at the front door. He walked to it and opened it. Rufus and Sheriff Mills were standing there.

"Miss me?" Rufus asked, walking into Bobby's kitchen.

Bobby looked in shock at Sheriff Mills.

"How did you…"

She shook her head.

"Don't ask. You got one hour, then I call the feds and tell them he busted out." she said definitively.

"Thanks." He breathed.

"I lose my job over this, I am taking it out of your ass!" she snapped, turning to leave as he nodded.

He closed the door and turned to Rufus.

"Please tell me the ring is still in your stomach." He sighed.

Rufus fished in his pants and produced the ring. Bobby glanced at it before grimacing.

"I'll go boil some water." He said, walking off.

"What?" Rufus shrugged.

* * *

Elena looked around as they landed in the field.

"This the right place?" Dean asked.

"Yep, cemetery is right there." she said, pointing at it.

He turned to face her.

"Thanks for helping Bobby with this these past few days even if you couldn't say that you were doing it." he said.

"He deserves to be helped after all the times he's helped us." Elena shrugged.

He leaned in and kissed her.

"I'll be back after." She said, handing him the shovel that she was carrying.

* * *

She arrived back just as Bobby was pouring a circle of salt for the summoning spell.

"Amate spiritus oscorte tae quadaramos aramos nobiscume quarde ahpule nos chikitara." He chanted.

He threw somethng at the candle in the circle that made the flame flare high. Then all of the sudden both of them could see their breath. They turned their heads to see a man dressed in old-fashioned clothing standing there.

"Gavin MacLeod?" Bobby asked.

"Yes." He nodded. "Is… is this hell?"

"That's gonna depend on you." Bobby said and the ghost stared at him. "You Fergus MacLeod's boy?"

Gavin nodded, his eyes squinting slightly.

"You and me... we're gonna have a nice long chat."

* * *

Elena and Bobby stood behind a table as Bobby did yet another summoning spell. This time, Crowley showed up looking very annoyed.

"Well, you look like hammered crap." Bobby commented.

"And you're a vision as always. Elena." Crowley said, looking at her. "It's nice to see that you're back in the game. I did miss your presence."

She simply stared at him, not speaking. He looked up to see that he was standing under a devil's trap.

"Don't we both know how this game ends? Really Bobby, you gotta know when to fold 'em." Crowley sighed.

"Word on the street is that ever since Lucifer went to the pokey, you're the big kahuna downstairs." Bobby said.

"I see you've been reading the trades." Crowley said, sounding less than pleased.

"Trouble in Paradise?" Elena asked.

"Darling, you... have no idea." He pulled out a drink and poured it in a glass he brought himself.

"I thought… when I got the corner office, I thought it was all going to be rainbows and two-headed puppies."

He turned to look back at them.

"But, if I'm being honest, it's been hell." Crowley took a big drink.

"I thought that was the point." Bobby said gruffly.

"You know what the problem with demons is?" Crowley asked, setting his glass down on the table.

"They're demons." Elena said in a deadpan voice.

"Exactly. Evil lying prats. The whole lot of them. And stupid. Try to show them a… a new way, a better way. And what do you get? Bugger all. You know, there's days that I think Lucifer's whole 'spike anything with black eyes' plan wasn't half bad." Crowley ranted. "Hmm. Feels good to get it off my chest. We should make this a thing."

"Do I look like Dr. Phil to you?" Bobby asked sarcastically.

"A little." Crowley shrugged.

Bobby glared at him.

"Anyhoo. Obviously not here for a social call. So on with it."

"I want…" Bobby began.

Crowley grunted to interrupt him.

"Save you the recap. In fact I'll do the shorthand for you." the demon sighed.

He pointed to Bobby.

"I want my soul back, idjit." He said in a ridiculous accent.

Then he pointed at himself.

"Fraid not."

Pointing at Bobby.

"But I'm surly and I got a beard. Gimme! Blah, blah, blah. Homespun cornpone insult, witty retort from yours truly. The bottom line is, you get bubkes. Are we done?" Crowley asked.

"Just getting started." Bobby said.

Both him and Elena looked to see Gavin appear. Crowley looked startled at the sudden appearance of his son. He looked back and forth between them and Gavin for a moment.

"Gavin?" he said, sounding a bit choked up.

Gavin stared at him.

"Is that you? It… it's been so long. I love you so…" Crowley cut off, laughing. "Sorry. Your soul for my boy, is that it, right? I've got to give you credit for thinking outside the box on that one, but… problem is... I loathe the little bastard. You want to torture him, just let me pull up a chair and watch. Hell, burn his bones and send him down to me and we can have a family reunion. That right, son? You picked the wrong bargaining chip this time, my friend."

"He ain't a chip." Bobby said and Crowley looked confused.

"We were just using him to dig up dirt on you. And since Gavin hates you maybe even more than you hate him, he was more than happy to tell us everything." Elena explained.

Crowley looked at Gavin.

"What did you tell them, son?"

Gavin smiled wickedly.

"Everything." He said in his thick Scottish brogue before nodding satisfactorily and disappearing.

"I know it all now. Fergus. You may be king of the dirt bags here but, in life, you were nothing but a two-bit tailor who sold his soul in exchange for an extra three inches below the belt." Bobby said, walking towards him.

"Just trying to hit double digits." Bobby smirked at the demon, who continued speaking. "So, you got a glimpse behind the curtain. And?"

"And… now we know where you're planted." Elena said, tossing her cell phone to Crowley.

He held it to his ear to listen.

"Hiya, Crowley." Dean said too happily.

"Dean. It's been a long time. We should get together." Crowley said, looking annoyed.

"Sure. We'll have to do that when I get back." Dean said.

"Back?" Crowley asked.

"Yeah. Me and Sam… we've gone international. In fact, we're in your neck of the woods."

Elena and Bobby exchanged a triumphant look as Crowley looked upset.

"Did you really use to wear a skirt?" Dean asked.

"A kilt. I had very athletic calves. What's the game?" The demon asked.

"Dominoes. In fact we just dug yours up."

"This is ridiculous. The whole burning bones thing… it's a myth." Crowley scoffed, staring at Bobby and Elena.

"I know an employee of yours who would disagree." Bobby said.

"That's where she got to." Crowley muttered as he dropped the phone to hold it at his waist.

"You demons. You think you're something special. But you're just spirits. Twisted, perverted, evil spirits. But, end of the day, you're nothing but ghosts with an ego."

Crowley's jaw twitched as he clenche dit.

"We torch your bones, you go up in flames." Bobby said.

"You hear that, Crowley?" Dean said over the phone as a clicking noise repeated over and over again.

They all looked down at the phone.

"That's me flicking my Bic for you."

"Your bones for my soul. Going once… going twice."

Crowley sighed, exasperated, as he tossed the phone to the ground.

"Bollocks." He snapped, raising his hand to reveal the contract on Bobby's arms.

He turned his hand over and the writing began disappearing as they watched.

"You can go ahead and leave in the part about my legs." Bobby growled.

Crowley rolled his eyes but did as the older hunter said.

"Pleasure doing business with you." Bobby said once Crowley was finished.

"Now if you don't mind." The demon glanced up at the devil's trap.

* * *

Sam and Dean remained where they were, standing over Crowley's bones. They saw something out of the corner of their eye and looked to see Elena standing there.

"I believe…" They all turned to see Crowley walking up with a bag. "… those are mine."

"You know, now that I think about it, maybe I'll just…" Dean clicked his lighter. "… napalm your ass anyhow."

Crowley just stared at him but Elena reached over and took the lighter out of his hands.

"Dean, he's a dick, but a deal's a deal." Sam sighed.

Crowley walked past them.

"I don't need you fight my battles for me, Moose. Get bent." He snapped, bending down to inspect the bones before placing them in the bag.

Finally he stood and looked at all of them.

"Now, if you'll excuse me. I've a little hell to raise." He said.

He disappeared and the boys turned to Elena as she sighed.

* * *

"I appreciate you three lending a hand." Bobby said as they all sat around the study.

"Hey, any time we get to punk Crowley works for us." Dean said as Elena curled into his side as they were sitting on the couch.

"Yeah." Sam agreed from the chair he was sitting in backwards.

"Listen. Um… about the things I said earlier. I was in a tough spot and I… I guess I was…" Bobby stammered from behind the desk where he was sitting.

"You were right, Bobby." Sam interrupted him. "We take you for granted."

"You've been cleaning up our messes for years, Bobby. Without you, I don't even want to think about where me and Sam would've ended up." Dean sighed.

Sam nodded in agreement.

They were all silent for a moment.

"Okay then, let's roll credits on this chick flick." He said, standing up and walking into the kitchen to finally cut himself a piece of cobbler.

The phone rang and they heard Bobby make a noise of frustration. Elena grinned and walked into the kitchen.

"Eat your damn cobbler." She said, picking up the phone.

* * *

After they all had a piece of cobbler with beer, Elena walked upstairs to change out of her clothes. She walked into the guest room and gasped with shock when she saw who was sitting on her bed.

"Hey, Elena." Jess said softly, curling her legs underneath her.

"This is impossible. I'm not asleep." Elena said, shutting her eyes and opening them again.

"Yeah, that doesn't really matter."

She snapped her head around to see Ruby walking out of the corner.

"What? Am I going through a world tour of Sam's ex's?" she snapped, glaring at the demon.

"Not quite." Another voice said.

She turned to see John Winchester standing there. But it wasn't the older John that she saw in heaven. No, this was the young John Winchester that she saw when she went back in time to the 70's.

"What the hell is going on?"

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Like I said, it was quite difficult to write. Please review!**

**A few things:**

**1. I'll give you a hint. Jess and Ruby are not alive. But "John" is another story. **

**2. Next chapter is the vampire chapter. I'll give you a little teaser about that, Elena is not going to be on the case with Sam and Dean. She's going to be working another case with another certain blonde female hunter. But they will definitely cross paths in a significant way.**

**3. There is going to be a hot lemons scene, so prepare thyself.**

**4. REVIEW PLEASE!**


	8. Chapter 8

**DON'T READ THIS CHAPTER. The consensus so far is that it's a crappy chapter with crappy writing so I'm re-writing it. So don't read it. I'm going to take it down anyways and replace it. So there's no point. I re-read it and I can't help but agree. I did a shit job on it. So I apologize and I'm re-writing it now.**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, RippahGoneWolf, Nyssandria, RHatch89, chiwi, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Deanwincesterrocks, DrawingMyHeartOut, Hollywood17, imusic247, CherrySin, Whitlocked-kat, diehardromantic, LineChokor, xxPaige23xx, and the guest for reviewing! **

**To RippahGoneWolf, Jess is in this chapter some. I'm writing through the eighth season and that's when I plan on stopping so it'll be a five part story.**

**To Dark-Supernatural-Angel, there's been mentions of her dealing with the SPN vamps but we haven't actually seen a case with them.**

**To DrawingMyHeartOut, thank you so much for calling my writing perfect! I don't expect for people to say that ever so it's always a wonderful surprise because I don't think that my writing is anywhere close to perfect. I think that I'm my worst criticizer. So thank you. **

**To LineChokor, cliffhangers are addicting. I can't help myself.**

**A few things:**

**1. Fun fact: all of the names I used in this chapter had something to do with vampire movies or television shows. Just something to keep up the theme.**

**2. I'm going to go back and forth between Elena and Jo and Dean and Sam for a while until they meet up. Elena and Jo's case is going to pass quickly.**

**3. THIS IS IMPORTANT! You're going to get more of Elena's mysterious visitors in this chapter. I want each and every one of my reviewers to tell me what they think of this storyline: the Jess/Ruby/John thing and of anyone else surprising showing up to talk to Elena. Is it ridiculous? Is it annoying? Is it out of place? Do you like it? Love it? Want to know more? Let me know please!**

**4. For the music, I've decided to start putting it at the parts in the story where it starts and stops. I hope that works better.**

* * *

"Elena, it's okay." Jess assured Elena as she stood in front of the closed bedroom door.

"No part of this is okay! I'm seeing a bunch of dead people!" she said, staring around warily.

"We can't hurt you." Ruby said as if this fact was particularly bothersome to her.

"And why, of all beings, are you here?" Elena snapped, glaring at her.

"It's part of her punishment." John finally spoke up.

She looked over at him with uncertainty.

"Helping the very people she did everything to harm is worse punishment than any torture she would receive in hell, is it not, Ruby?" he said, his eyes flickering over to the demon.

Ruby squinted back at him, looking slightly angry.

"So this is really Ruby? And that's Jess and you're really John Winchester? You're not projections of my mind?" Elena questioned.

"We're real." Jess confirmed definitively.

Elena focused on John.

"Why do you look like you did from 1977?" she asked.

He looked a little bit annoyed at all of her questions.

"This is my age that you are most familiar with. It was thought that you would be more receptive to it." he explained.

"Who sent you? Why are you here?"

"To help you." Jess offered, her face showing the most sympathy and kindess compared to the other two.

Elena sighed and shook her head.

"This is impossible. You are all dead. You shouldn't be here and I shouldn't be talking to you." Elena said, sitting on the bed far away from Jess.

"We're here. Nothing you can do about it." Ruby said simply.

"You could be a little gentler." Jess sighed.

"She stabbed me in the heart. Excuse me if I don't sugarcoat it for my killer." The demon snapped.

"Enough." John said, his eyes narrowed.

The door suddenly opened and Dean walked in. Elena looked around to see that the apparitions were gone.

"Hey, you've been up here for a while. You haven't changed yet?" he said, walking to her and sitting on the bed next to her.

"Yeah, I just have a headache." She mumbled, not lying as her head was pounding painfully.

"Oh, do you need to lie down?" Dean asked.

"No, no I'm fine. What's going on?" she replied.

"Well Bobby just got a call about a case…"

"Let's go." Elena said eagerly, wanting to take her mind off of the apparitions.

He looked surprised at her quick response.

"All right. Let's go." Dean agreed.

He watched as she walked around packing clothes and things.

"How did it go? Watching Sam?" she asked quietly.

"Fine. Nothing strange happened. But there's still something there, you know?"

"I completely agree." Elena nodded, placing the two bags on the bed.

"I just have no idea what's going on and it's killing me." Dean said, tugging her over to stand in front of him.

He wrapped his arms around her torso and placed his forehead against her stomach.

"I'm second guessing everything that's coming out of his mouth." He explained.

"You should be. He's not acting like Sam. If we can't figure anything out, we'll go to Samuel and see what went on in the past year." She suggested, running her fingers through his hair gently.

"Yeah, cause I can trust that guy." Dean mumbled into her shirt.

"He's the only insight you have into what's been going on. you might have to trust him." Elena reminded him.

"Do you trust him?" Dean asked curiously, looking up at her.

"I guess not." She sighed. "But like I said, we might have to."

* * *

They were driving down the road when Elena's phone began to ring.

"Hello?" she said once she answered it, Dean glancing over at her with a questioning look.

"Hey, remember when you said we could hunt together?" Jo said over the phone.

"Yeah." Elena responded warily.

"How do you feel about starting that now? I found a case but Mom wants to stay here with some friends." the other young woman said in an annoyed voice.

"Who is it?" Dean asked.

Sam peered up at her from the backseat.

"Jo, she wants to work a case together." She explained.

"Oh well if we weren't already…"

"Not you two. Just me and her." Elena cut him off.

"Oh." He said again, taken aback.

"Listen, Jo, I'm headed towards a case with the boys." Elena began.

"Where?" the other female asked.

"Limestone, Illinois." Elena replied.

"Well how about that? the case I'm pursuing is in Watseka, Illinois less than an hour away from Limestone. Please, Elena. I already know that it's pretty much a standard haunting so it's a open and close, salt and burn case. A day of work at the most." She pleaded.

Elena sighed and glanced over at Dean.

"You should go." he said.

"Really?" she asked, her eyes widening as she felt bad.

"Yeah, it'll be nice for you to have some female company and I know that Jo could use someone to hang out with that is her gender and age." He shrugged.

"We can handle this case until you get back" Sam assured her.

Elena's eyes flashed back to the younger brother and she looked at the older one questioningly. He simply nodding, letting her know that everything would be all right until she got back.

"I'll meet you in Watseka." she sighed.

* * *

**Watseka**

"What do we got?" Elena asked as she walked into the hotel room.

Jo was sitting on one bed and she had papers all spread around her.

"Ghost problem in a house. I couldn't get a list of the previous owners because the house has only ever been sold by owner and not by a real estate company. We'll have to get into the town records to get the owners. There are no police reports of any deaths at the house but you and I both know that that doesn't mean there haven't been any of them. The sheriff was a real jackass, didn't want to tell me anything about the house which means there has to be something creepy about it." Jo fired off.

Elena nodded and sat on her own bed.

"People living in the house now?" she asked.

"Yep." Jo nodded.

"Great." Elena sighed.

The blonde grinned over at her.

"Hey, look at it this way, at least we get to break into the courthouse." She said.

Elena fought back a smile but was unsuccesfully, finally allowing it to break out on her face.

"That shouldn't sound as fun as it does." She admitted.

* * *

**Limestone**

"Hey, did you get there okay?" Dean asked into the phone.

"Yeah, how are things going there?" Elena said from the other end.

Dean glanced around where Sam was approaching from the police station with a bunch of papers in his hands.

"They're fine. We're just now getting the names of the missing people. So you think you'll be here by tomorrow?" he questioned.

"I don't know, probably. We're working a haunted house. The house is privately sold so we have to go to the records to see who's owned it in the past and if any of these previous owners have suffered a particularly violent death." Elena said, sounding a little distracted.

"Oh, cool. What are you posing as?" Dean asked.

"Hmm?" she hummed.

"You know, to get into the records?" he reminded her.

"Oh yeah, we're not. We're just waiting for tonight… after closing." Elena said.

"We've been such a bad influence on you." Dean chuckled.

"Yeah, I'll put you down to pay my bail if we get caught. We're about to head over to the house to scope it out. I'll talk to you later, okay? Let me know if you need anything with the case or with Sam. I'll be there." Elena assured him.

"I will. Talk to you later. Love you." he said.

"Love you too." She nodded.

"What was that?" Sam asked once he hung up.

"What? Nothin. What do you got?" Dean asked.

Sam regarded him suspiciously before handing him a stack of missing persons flyers. Dean thumbed through them quickly.

"Six girls in seven days, which is more disappearances than this city has seen in over a year… all about the same age." He said.

"Hmm. Sounds like we have a monster with a preference." Dean commented.

"Well, half a dozen girls, late teens, a shower away from greatness. Sounds like a profile. I mean, what else they got in common?" Sam questioned.

"Well... six directions to go here. Pick a number." Dean said, looking up at him.

"Seven. Another call just came in today." Sam corrected him as they climbed into the Impala.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena and Jo both arranged their faces into pleasant smiles as they walked up to the house. When the former knocked on the door, it opened to reveal a kind middle aged woman's face.

"Can I help you?" she asked, smiling between them.

"Actually, we are wondering if you can do us a really big favor." Elena said in an innocent voice.

"Yeah, we're from the college a few towns over and we're both in a photography class…" Jo began.

Elena held up the camera wrapped around her by a strap with a smile.

"… and our new project is to take pictures of old Victorian homes. Yours is absolutely gorgeous. We were just wondering if we could get some pictures of the exterior and, if you're not too uncomfortable with it, the interior?" Jo said hopefully, playing her part perfectly.

"It's part of our midterm grade, it's so important. We just have been driving all over like, three towns, and yours is the prettiest home we've found." Elena said, the blonde nodding in agreement along with her.

"Well I suppose I don't have any objection with that. How about you girls come inside? I'll fix you up some tea. It's awfully cold out there. You can look around the house a little bit and tell me what you think." The woman said, stepping aside.

"I'm Ellen Hutter. You can call me Ellen." The woman said, holding her hand out once she closed the door.

"I'm Stella Oleson and this is Anna Valerious." Jo said, smiling as they shook her hand.

"It's so nice to meet you, dears. Let me just go put on the kettle." Ellen bustled out of the room and into the kitchen.

"Stella?" Elena whispered.

"It popped in my head." Jo hissed back, making Elena laugh lightly.

"Now tell me more about your project." Ellen said, ushering them into the kitchen to sit.

"We just need to take pictures of the outside and any of the inside that is authentic and untouched." Elena said

"Oh, that'll be just fine." The woman said, smiling as she handed them.

They heard the sound of the door opening.

"Ellen? You home?" a male's voice called.

Jo's eyes widened and she looked at Elena with an 'abort mission' look. The dark haired female looked back at her with a questioning look.

"I'm in the kitchen." Ellen called back.

They turned and Elena immediately saw the sheriff's star sitting on the man's chest when he walked in.

"What's going on?" he asked, his eyes flickering over them.

Then they settled on Jo and narrowed.

"And just what do you think you're doing in my house?" he demanded.

"This is your house? That makes sense." Jo said, smiling as they both realized why he was so upset with her when she tried to get answers about it from him.

"Honey, they're just trying to get some pictures for a school project." Ellen said, confused.

"No, they're a couple of stupid kids trying to get a thrill out of looking for ghosts. This one was trying to get information on any strange activity in the house just a few hours ago." the sheriff snapped, looking angry.

They both saw Ellen pale a little bit and Elena and Jo exchanged a slightly amused, slightly guilty look.

"Get out." he said.

"But… is there anything strange going on, Mrs. Hutter?" Elena asked.

"I said out!" he snapped.

"Roy…" Ellen began.

"Now! Before I arrest you both!"

"Gladly." Elena and Jo said, knowing that there was, in fact, something going on in that house.

They gathered their stuff, waved goodbye, and ran out of the house. When they ran out to Jo's car, they looked at each other and laughed.

"Looks like there's something fishy in the Hutter family." Elena said, amusement in her voice.

"Indeed." Jo said with an amused look just like Elena, grinning as they climbed into the car.

* * *

**Limestone**

"I'm Agent Malloy and this is Agent Giles." Dean said as they showed their badges to the father of the newest missing girl.

"You're here about Kristin?" he asked as they walked into the house.

"Yes sir. What can you tell us about her?" Sam questioned

"Kristin's a good kid. A little naive, sure... you try to be a good parent. Girls are hard." He sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Sam and Dean exchanged a furrowed brow look.

"Right. Well, we'd just like to find your daughter." Sam said, looking upstairs where her room probably was.

"Last door on the left." Her father said, pointing upstairs.

"Thanks." Dean nodded.

They turned to climb the stairs. once they got to the top, Sam glanced back at the father.

"Whaddya think he was talking about?" he asked quietly, looking back at Dean. "Drugs?"

Dean shrugged as he opened the door. They were immediately met with blood red walls and posters of vampires covering the walls.

"Oh, it is so much worse." Dean said disgustedly.

"Vampires?" Sam snorted.

"Ah, these aren't vampires, man, these..." Sam shut the door behind them and Dean glanced back at it to see a full-sized cutout of a 'vampire'. "… these are douche bags." Dean scoffed.

"Yeah." Sam agreed as they looked the room.

"Wow." The older brother said, shaking his head.

Sam walked to the bed and began flipping her covers up to find anything she might want to hide. Finally he found her laptop under her pillow.

"Aha! All right." He moved to sit at her desk. "Let's see what we can see."

He turned on the laptop and it made a woman's screaming noise as soon as it switched on. An intense looking fake vampire popped up and they both flinched as Dean leaned over Sam's shoulder.

"Th-that's just... uncomfortable." Sam stammered.

"What's he so bummed out about?" Dean said, shaking his head as he looked around where he was standing.

Sam started pressing keys and a password prompt popped up as Dean caught sight of a paperback book on the desk entitled 'My Summer Blood'. The cover depicted a man standing over a sleeping teenager's bed.

"Look at this. He's watching her sleep. How is that not rape-y?" Dean said, shoving the book towards Sam.

"I gotta concentrate here, Dean." Sam sighed as he tried 'Dracula' for the password.

The laptop made the screaming noise again and the younger hunter jumped slightly, an annoyed look on his face.

"He could hear the blood rushing inside her, almost taste it. He tried desperately to control himself..."

Another scream sounded from the laptop as Dean read.

"...Romero knew their love was impossible… Romero? Really?" Dean scoffed.

"Dean. Shut up." Sam snapped.

"This is a national bestseller. How is that possible?" he said, ignoring his brother as he walked to the bed and picked up one of the vampire pillows.

"Hey, try, uh… Lautner."

"Wait… he's a werewolf." Sam said as he typed in the password. "How do you even know who that is?"

"Are you kidding me? That kid's everywhere. It's a freakin' nightmare." Dean said, rolling his eyes.

The laptop rejected the password yet again and Sam's face got more frustrated.

"Hey, how many T's are there in Pattins… That's it." Sam said, the computer finally accepting the password. We're in! Ha! All right."

He began to look through the social networking site that showed up most in her history.

"Well?" Dean asked, approaching the desk again.

"Well, her inbox is full, from some guy claiming to be a vampire." Sam shrugged.

"A real vampire?" he asked skeptically, his eyes scanning the messages.

"Well, uh... 'I can only meet you at night... I don't trust myself with you...the call of your blood is too strong.' Vampires fishing for victims?" Sam shrugged.

"Probably just a human mouth-breather, right?" Dean wondered.

"On the other hand… talk about easy prey." He suggested.

"For actual vamps." Dean nodded, wondering

"Yeah. I mean, these chicks are just throwing themselves at you. All you gotta do is... I dunno. Write bad poetry." Sam said, gesturing to the computer.

"Huh!" Dean said, looking around.

"Wow. This guy wanted to meet her at a place called The Black Rose." Sam said, reading off the most recent message.

"Gimme a break..." Dean said, rolling his eyes.

"Just reporting the news." Sam said simply.

"It's probably just your standard-issue perv, right?" Dean questioned.

Sam closed the laptop and turned to face him with a shrug.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena and Jo were sitting in the motel room waiting for the sun to set when Jo glanced over at her.

"What's going on with Sam?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked, furrowing her brow at the blonde.

"I heard you say something to Dean about it when I was in the bathroom. Is everything all right?" Jo asked.

Elena sighed.

"We don't know. He's… different." She shrugged, not wanting to go into too much detail.

"Is he possessed by a demon?" the other girl said, her eyes widening.

Elena remembered hearing about the time that a demon possessed Sam a few years ago and attacked Jo.

"No, we did all of the tests on him and he still has the tattoo." Elena explained.

"Well… maybe it's just from having Lucifer inside of him. What if it had long lasting effects?" Jo asked.

Elena pressed her lips in a line, worried that Jo was right. What if what was wrong was Sam was irreversible?

* * *

**Limestone**

"Okay. So now, you're sure it's vampires? A hundred percent?" Sam asked, leaning against the Impala as Dean loaded stuff into the trunk.

The sun was just beginning to set and they were getting ready to go to the Black Rose to scope the place out.

"Definitely. We got a pattern now. Kids go missing, blood bank van gets jumped. This is the fourth town." Samuel said from over the phone. "Clincher is, this last hit? Driver was found, throat ripped out."

"Okay. They grab kids, that's food, right? But if they already got a bunch of walking, talking juice bars... why bother with the blood mobile? It doesn't add up." Sam said, sounding confused.

"Find the nest. Figure it out." Samuel said simply.

Sam sighed before hanging up.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena and Jo walked out of the courthouse with confusion. They were both dressed all in black but not suspiciously so.

"How is it possible that there is no record of anyone disappearing?" Elena wondered.

"Police cover up?" Jo shrugged.

Before she got the chance to answer, a car screeched to a stop in front of them. The sheriff himself climbed out and was glaring at them.

"I'd say there's a chance of that." Elena said as he drew out a gun and pointed it at them. They both lifted their hands in a surrender motion.

"Trespassing?" he said, glancing back at the courthouse.

"Just taking a walk, sir." Jo said simply.

"I'm sure that you are. Get in the car." He said, gesturing to it.

"We're good, honestly." Elena said.

"I'll shoot you both if you don't get in." he snapped.

Elena glanced over at Jo, who looked back and shrugged.

"Well, if you insist." Elena sighed, walking towards it.

She opened the door as he pointed at it.

"You, in the front." He said, closing it and pointing the gun at Jo.

She climbed in the passenger seat and he kept the gun trained on her as he walked around the house.

"You should have left well enough alone." He said.

* * *

**Limestone**

"Well, you wanted Emo chicks, I think we hit Ground Zero." Dean said as a waitress in a black leather skimpy outfit gave them their drinks. "Thank you."

He watched as he walked away with a thoughtful look.

"You think she wears all that leather to the beach?"

Sam rolled his eyes and began to canvas the bar.

"When was the last time we had a beer together, anyway?" Dean said, taking a sip of his beer.

"There." Sam nodded without answering his older brother's question.

They both studied a male in a black coat and a dog collar chatting up a pretty teenaged girl.

"Whaddya think? He's hittin' on her hard enough. Real?" Sam questioned.

"I dunno. It's hard to tell." Dean said, looking around and catching sight of two other men in similar situations. "Hey, we got multiple choice."

"Great. Three of them and two of us." Sam sighed.

They both watched as another man walked up to one of their suspects and began kissing him. After taking a moment to process what they were seeing, Dean spoke up.

"Okay. Make that two of them."

Sam spotted the dog collared male escort his date out of the bar.

"One's on the move." He said, setting his drink down and standing up.

"All right. You go with Efron, I got Bieber." Dean said and they parted ways.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena and Jo remained silent throughout the trip but when they arrived at the house, Elena finally spoke up as he yanked them out of the car.

"What's going on, Mr. Hutter?" she asked as they walked up to the house. "Got a skeleton in your closet?"

"Shut up." He snapped, shoving them through the door that Ellen was holding open.

Elena could have easily struggled her way out of the situation but she was interested to see where it was going. They were both quickly tied up in chairs back to back.

"Roy, what are you going to do with them?" Ellen whispered.

"I don't know." He said, staring at them. "But we have to get rid of them."

"If you're going to get rid of us, the least you can do is tell us why." Elena said, glancing over at them.

Jo nodded in agreement.

"You've been sniffing around our personal business." Roy snapped.

"We've been trying to help. You've just been getting in our way.." Elena said.

"Ellen, stay here. I'm going to go get the chloroform. We gotta do this quietly." Roy turned and walked out of the room.

Elena looked at the woman.

"My name is Elena Gilbert. This is Jo Harvelle." She said.

Jo nudged her as much as she could and glanced back at her with wide eyes.

"We're hunters. We hunt ghosts and other monsters. I think you know why we're here, Ellen. There have been signs of a ghost in this house."

The woman shook her head, her hand to her mouth. That was when Elena saw the tiny circular burns on her arm. She glanced around and saw a package of cigarettes on the table.

"Who did he kill, Ellen?" she asked, looking back at the woman.

She stared at Elena with wide eyes.

"What do you…" she began in a high voice.

"He's obviously got a temper. He wouldn't have come after us with a gun if that weren't true. You also wouldn't have cigarette burns on your arm." She pointed out.

Ellen looked down at them with a panicked look.

"Who did he kill?" she asked again.

The woman shook her head and backed away.

"He didn't… it was an accident." She said.

"Are you sure?" Jo asked, jumping in as she realized what was going on.

Roy suddenly came back into the room with a bottle and a rag. Elena gave up on trying to get answers and instead concentrated on unraveling the ropes that bound her hands with her mind. Her eyes glanced around to see Roy pouring the clear liquid onto the rag. She focused even more on getting free.

"Tell me, Ellen." She grunted out, trying to get the answer in hopes that it would slow Roy down.

It didn't work and he approached Jo with the rag first. Elena bit her lip and looked around for anything to help go faster. That was when she caught sight of the young woman standing in the doorway. She was pale and sickly looking. Suddenly she flickered out of sight. She was the ghost. Elena realized that she'd seen her before and looked around to see a picture of the girl alive and well with Roy and Ellen.

"Was she your daughter?" she said, causing both of them to freeze.

"What the hell do you mean?" Roy snapped.

"What did you tell everyone when you killed her? That she left town?" Elena asked, the ropes slowly falling from her wrists.

"Why you little…" he darted forward and pressed the chloroform to her mouth.

In the next moment, he was thrown across the room. Not by the ghost, thought. By John Winchester, the younger version she saw that morning. He glanced at Elena and nodded before turning to where Roy was getting up. The ropes fell off and Elena stood, shooting a warning glance at Ellen, who looked shocked at John's sudden appearance. Then she turned and worked on sawing through Jo's ropes with the knife she pulled out of her boot. When Jo was free, they turned to where Roy was getting up.

"Who is this?" Jo asked, shocked as she looked at John.

Elena turned to her, shocked that she could see him.

"He's a friend." She said simply, glad that Jo didn't recognize him.

"The body is in the basement in a trunk." He said, glaring at Roy.

"Who the hell are you people?" he spat, looking panicked.

"Hunters." Elena said simply.

Roy got up and charged at them, pulling his gun out. In the next moment, John had him twisted around and sitting in the chair, his own handcuffs latched onto his wrist and then clapped to the chair.

"Whoa. Seriously, who are you?" Jo said, her eyes wide.

He glanced at Elena.

"I will see you." he said before disappearing.

"An angel?" Jo asked, looking at Elena.

"I don't know." She admitted, her mind even more confused.

* * *

**Limestone**

"Are you sure, baby? Are you ready to join me in eternity?" the man said, pressing the woman against the wall and kissing her neck.

"Oh my God, totally." She moaned.

He was about to take a bit when Dean yanked him off and threw him backwards.

"Hey!" the male protested.

"Go… get outta here!" Dean snapped to the girl, ignoring him.

"Wait, what..." he was interrupted by Dean throwing him agaisnt the dumpster with his arm across his chest holding him there. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Open your mouth!" Dean growled, glaring at him.

He did as he was told, opening his mouth to reveal two fake fangs on his canine teeth. Dean shot him a disgusted look.

"Take those out. Take 'em out!" he ordered.

He obeyed and revealed that his mouth was competely normal.

"Oh, for the love of... What're you, twelve?" Dean said, rolling his eyes.

Then he noticed something and looked closer.

"Are you wearing glitter?" He said, a grimace forming on his face..

"I only do it to get laid, man!" the boy shrugged.

"Does it work?" Dean asked, suddenly interested.

The male shrugged and nodded.

"I'll be damned. All right, mmmbop your way outta here. Go, go!" he kicked the boy in the ass as he ran off. "And use a condom!"

* * *

**Watseka**

"I guess you were right when you said less than a day." Elena said as she shoved her boots off.

It turned out that the sheriff had a history of domestic violence but he was never called out on it because he was the sheriff. Everyone in town thought his daughter ran off in college when she was really rotting down in the basement for five years. Her ghost had probably been trying to call attention to him for all those years and that was why people thought that there was a violent spirit in the house. After the body was found and Ellen gave testimony against her husband in exchange for a plea bargain that let her off for being an accessory to murder, the sheriff was arrested.

"I didn't expect that to be the end of the case, though." Jo said. "Did you really not know who that guy was?"

"I honestly thought he was a hallucination until you told me you saw him. Now, I have no idea what to think." Elena said truthfully.

"Maybe you should tell Dean and Bobby. They can look it up and see what's going on." Jo suggested.

"We have enough on our plates with Sam. Once we figure him out, we can figure me out." she said definitively.

"Well in the meanttime, I'm exhausted. Let's go to sleep." Jo sighed, laying back.

"Agreed." Elena said, flopping back onto her bed.

* * *

**Limestone**

Dean sighed, watching the man run off before he turned to walk out of the alley.

"You're pretty." A distinctly male voice said.

Dean turned to find himself face-to-face with a freaky looking guy with bushy hair.

"I'm sorry?" he said, wondering if he was hearing right.

"I said... you're pretty." He repeated.

"Yeah, sorry again, pal." Dean chuckled. "I don't play for your team."

The man suddenly launched out and grabbed Dean, throwing him through the air. He landed on the dumpster hard and rolled off into a pile of garbage bags. He choked, taking a few moments to recover himself as he stood. Dazed, he turned to see the creature, whatever it was, approaching him. He bent down and grabbed a pipe, taking a swing at the large man. He ducked the attack easy and pinned Dean against the dumpster, punching him several times. It felt like being hit by a truck each time.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena gasped when she saw the man standing at the edge of her bed.

"What the hell? You can't keep showing up out of nowhere!" she snapped, glaring at him.

She glanced over to see that Jo was fast asleep.

"You are sleeping." John assured her. "And I only showed up at the home tonight to help you."

"I had it under control. Why are you here? Why are you helping me at all?" she asked, truly wanting to know why this was happening.

"It will be revealed soon." He said cryptically.

"It will be revealed now or I'm going to throwing a fucking fit." She snapped, not in the mood for his vagueness.

He reminded her of the angels.

"Sleep, Elena. You will find peace tonight." He said simply before disappearing.

**(A/N: I know that you're probably wondering why she's not feeling that Dean's in danger. There's a reason for that. *****evil laugh* ****)**

* * *

**Limestone**

Sam heard the commotion, running into the alley and quickly surveying the situation. He stopped suddenly and watched with a slightly fascinated look. Dean was lying limply against the dumpster, his fight all but gone. The man pinned him with his right arm across his chest, just below his throat. Then he brought his left wrist up to his mouth and fangs descended, showing that he was a vampire. Dean watched, helpless and unable to move. He was not aware of Sam standing there watching, too panicked with the monster's actions to notice. The vampire brought his wrist to Dean's mouth, smearing the blood all over it. The hunter let out a gutteral noise as a few drops slid into his mouth and down his throat.

Sam's mouth suddenly twitched up into a smirk. The vampire listened, making sure that Dean swallowed some of his blood. Suddenly Sam pulled a machet out of his coat.

"No!" he yelled, rushing forward.

The man released Dean, allowing him to collapse to the ground, and faced off with Sam. The vampire and the hunter sized each other up for a moment. Then Sam jumped forward, making a few slashes with the machete, which the monster easily evaded. He laughed and waved to Sam before running off and climbing up the wall to escape. Dean was lying on the ground leaning against the dumpster, panting with blood all over his mouth.

"Sammy…" he said weakly.

Sam looked at him, doing his best to look shocked and concerned.

* * *

The younger brother shut all of the curtains as Dean held a hand to his head. The noises of the city around him were all amplified in his head.

"Oh my God, what is that sound?" he groaned, leaning against the wall.

"What sound, Dean?" Sam asked, looking around for what he could be talking about.

Dean walked to the bedside table and pushed over the lamp, causing it to crash to the floor. A passing fire trucks siren and honking grew louder and Dean leaned his head against the wall. He could hear the sound of the television in the next room and it was driving him insane.

"Hey, c'mon, keep it down, dammit!" he yelled, slamming his fist down on the wall.

He turned and winced at the bulbs of the light fixture hangin from the ceiling.

"Please, please shut that off... geez..." he pleaded.

Sam turned the light off but it didn't help much. Every single noise that he heard was defeaning, from his brother's footsteps to the click of his watch. Dean suddenly heard a thumping noise and he looked at Sam, realizing that it was his heartbeat.

"Dean... you should sit down..." Sam began.

"You sit down." He snapped back, sitting on the edge of the bed and cradling his head in his hands.

Suddenly a freight train passing a few miles away reached his ears and he winced, pulling at his hair.

"Of all the ways to die, I never thought I'd be going out like this." he grumbled, his heart sinking.

Why wasn't Elena there? Shouldn't her danger radar have been going off? Of course, Sam wanted to call her but Dean didn't want her there. She would try to fix something that was unfixable at this point and it would be too painful for her to watch him die.

"Dean, nobody is going out." Sam sighed.

"Samuel is gonna kill me when he gets here." Dean said.

"No, Dean, he's not!" Sam exclaimed, shocked at his words.

"Yes he is, cause I'm gonna ask him to because you won't do it. And Elena sure as hell won't do it." Dean growled, standing up and pacing.

"Okay, just hold on a second..." Sam said, trying to get ahold of the situation.

"For what, huh? Look at me!" he shouted.

"We can figure this out!" Sam said, trying to convince him.

"How?!" Dean yelled.

Sam had no answer and Dean suddenly noticed something. Sam's heartbeat was rather calm for the situation. He stared at him suspiciously.

"Why aren't you freaked out?" he demanded.

"Of course I am!" Sam scoffed.

"Really? Cause I can hear your heartbeat, and it's pretty damned steady." Dean snapped.

"That's cause I'm... I'm trying to remain calm. Dean, look… Samuel will know what to do." Sam said, taking his mind off of his heartbeat.

"C'mon, man, I'm a monster, okay? This is not a problem that you spit-ball. We gotta deal with this before I hurt somebody." Dean said, shaking his head.

There was an uncomfortable pause before Dean held his head and groaned.

"How's it feel?" Sam finally asked.

"Now? Now you wanna talk about my feelings?" Dean demanded.

"No, I mean... physically." The younger brother sighed.

"How do you think it feels? Not good!" he growled, crossing towards the bathroom.

"Where you going?" Sam asked.

"Bathroom, okay? News flash, Mr. Wizard… vampires pee!" he snapped, storming into the bathroom and slamming the door closed.

He leaned over, sighing as he splashed water on his face. Then he looked up at his reflection and stared at his mouth. He carefully lifted his lip with his finger to reveal that his fangs had already grown in just above his regular teeth. He closed his eyes, hanging his head in despair. In all that was happening, all he could think of was Elena. If he could just see her again before… before it was over. He glanced at the door and bit his lip, a habit he picked up from his girl. Then he reached down and turned the water on again.

After five minutes, Sam glanced at the door with a suspicious look. He walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door.

"Dean?" he said.

After a few moments of silence except for the water running, he pushed the door open to find that it was empty. The window was open and the blinds were hanging at an odd angle.

* * *

**Watseka**

Elena felt his presence before she woke up. Her eyes flashed open and she saw him shrouded in shadow. A gasp escaped from her mouth as she sat up.

"Dean?" she whispered, rubbing her eyes.

"Hey." He said in a soft voice, mindful of Jo sleeping in the next bed.

Elena slowly slid out of the bed and stood in front of him.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" she asked sleepily.

"I, uh… I wanted to see you." he admitted.

Elena's brow furrowed and alarm bells went off in her head. There was something wrong with him.

"Hang on." she murmured, grabbing her robe off of the end of the bed.

She walked to the door slowly and eased it open so that it didn't wake Jo. Dean followed her out onto the sidewalk of the motel.

"What's going on, Dean?" she asked, reaching out for his hand once he shut the door.

He stepped towards her slowly, inhaling deeply.

"I just… I needed to see you." he said again, reaching out to brush her cheek.

"Did something happen with Sam?" Elena questioned, looking up at him as she checked him for any injuries or something else.

"No, no. Everything is fine." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Dean, you're scaring me. I know something is wrong. Please just, tell me." she pleaded.

"I just wanted to say thank you, for everything. I love you." he said.

"Dean…" she said, feeling like he was giving her a goodbye speech.

She stepped forward and he inhaled deeply again. Suddenly she was pressed against the wall of the hotel and he was burying his face in her neck, nuzzling it. Elena put her hands on his shoulders and began to push him away until his tongue darted out to flick over her skin. She gasped and couldn't help it as heat shot straight to the apex of her thighs.

"Dean…" Elena sighed. "What are you doing?"

"I want you." he groaned, pressing himself against her.

She could feel the evidence of his need pressed against her and it turned her on even more.

"Dean… what…" she was cut off by his lips on hers and his hands went to her hips, gripping them tightly.

"Now… I need you now." He hissed against her lips.

Elena felt her logical side losing the battle against the passionate side that Dean was bringing out in her. She would be lying if she said that the same need that he was feeling wasn't bubbling up inside of her as well. Before she knew it, he pulled away from her.

"Impala." He growled, pulling her away from the wall.

With lust filling her mind, and other places, she let herself be tugged across the parking lot without care for the gravel that was digging into her bare feet. When they got to the car, Dean didn't waste any time before dragging her inside. She was lying down on the backseat with him hovering over her. His face buried in her neck again.

"You smell so good." He groaned.

"Dean… are you…" Elena couldn't get the rest out as he began scrambling to get her clothes out of his way.

**LEMONY - Bedroom Hymns (Florence + the Machine)**

Before she knew it, she was down to her underwear and nothing else. Without allowing her to do the same to him, Dean began placing soft, wet kisses all over her body, down her torso, across her hips, down her thighs and calves all the way to her feet. Elena gave up on asking what was going on, her breath coming out in short, straggled puffs. As he began kissing his way back up, his hands gently worked on sliding her underwear down and spreading her legs. She knew what was coming before it happened but it still sent warm shivers through her body when she felt his hot breath between her thighs. His head moved slightly forward and she felt his lips press to her heated womanhood.

Elena let out a cry and arched her back at the light pressure on her most sensitive of areas. Then his tongue hesitantly darted out and he proceeded to lick one long path up the length.

"Fuck!" she couldn't help but moan, her hands flying out for something to grip.

She felt him smirk against her and then he began to lick, suck and nibble on her, making cries and moans escape from her mouth as well as lengthy curses of pleasure. Finally, one of his fingers slid into her, making her head fly back and her hands went to his hair, gripping it tightly and spurring him on. Slowly but surely he brought her to the brink. When he suddenly withdrew, leaving her cold and unsatisfied, she stared up at him with wide eyes.

"What the hell?" she growled, too far gone to care.

He grinned and pulled off his jacket and shirt. Elena reached up and yanked his t-shirt over his head. With much maneuvering, he was finally naked too. Before either of them knew it, Elena was on top of him. She slowly slid down on him, both of them letting out a loud moan at the feeling. She leaned forward, placing her hands on his shoulders as she moved her hips. He brought her down, their lips crashing together hungrily. His hands went to her hips, gripping them tightly as he helped her move. His hips drove up to meet her, causing a delighful friction between them. His hands almost gripped her too tight and she was sure that there would be bruises. She didn't care, loving the feeling of him being less than gentle with her.

"Fuck. You… are fucking amazing." He growled, kissing her jawline down to her throat.

Elena grinned and sat up, her hand on his stomach as she rocked back and forth. Her head threw back as her nails raked down his abs. His hand suddenly traveled down, his fingers finding her bundle of nerves and rubbing that spot. Stars flashed across her eyes as she climbed closer to her climax. Their grunts filled the car and Elena hoped that no one would pass by and see what was going on. Finally, her walls clamped down as her orgasm filled her with pleasurable spasms. Her head fell to his chest as he let out a shout and swelled inside of her before releasing his seed into her.

**END LEMONY – END SONG**

Elena sat up, the look on his face her favorite part about their sexcapades. Suddenly his mouth opened and she let out a cry of panic when pointed fangs slid out of his jaws. She was up and off of him in an instant. Before she scrambled out of the car, she snapped her fingers and her clothes were back on her. Then she turned and ran away from the car, her mind going at a million miles an hour to try to figure out what the hell was going on. She heard him yelling for her but she ran for the door as fast as she could, her mind too panicked to figure out that she could just teleport into the room and shut him out. As she ran through the door, Jo sat up in her bed.

"Elena? What's wrong?" she asked.

Elena let out a sob and tried to slam the door shut but Dean caught it and ran in, his jeans and t-shirt thrown carelessly on.

"Elena please…" he began.

"What the hell?" she demanded, tears streaming down her face.

"Dean? What are you doing here?" Jo asked, confused as she climbed out of the bed.

"What happened to you?" Elena cried, realizing that running away from him probably wasn't the best thing to do.

She just panicked and was afraid for the first time in a long time.

"Elena, I'm sorry. I should have told you." Dean said.

"Are you a vampire?" she whimpered.

He looked at her with a devastated look on his face.

"Oh my God." She said, her hands going to her mouth.

Instead of stumbling away as he thought she would, Elena walked forward slowly.

"Dean…" she whispered, reaching out for him.

He stepped away.

"You shouldn't… I'm not…" he began, shaking his head as he realized that he was a danger to her.

"It's okay. We'll fix this." she assured him, reaching out to touch his cheek.

"Elena… your blood." He groaned, the smell that drove him insane filling his mind again.

It's what led to his lapse in judgment and their subsequent sex in the Impala. He was shocked that he didn't bite her during the act, especially when her face was buried in his shoulder and her throat so close to his mouth.

"Dean, it'll be okay." She said, stepping closer and ignoring his warning.

He couldn't be stronger than her so she could easily overpower him if he tried to attack her. But she still wasn't expecting it when he seized her arms and propelled her into the wall, his thirst driving him wild. Jo shrieked as she hit it with a slam and fell to the ground unconscious. She stumbled backwards towards the duffle bag of weapons. Dean stared down at Elena's form before looking at her with wide eyes.

"I'm… I'm so sorry." He said, coming back to himself.

"Dean? It's okay. You didn't mean to." Jo said warily.

"No, I can't. I have to… tell her I love her. I'm so sorry." He said, devastation filling his voice.

Dean bent down and hesitantly placed a kiss to her forehead before lifting her and placing her on the bed. Then he disappeared out the door.

* * *

**Limestone**

"Can't keep track of your brother now?" Samuel snapped as he walked through the door with Sam into the motel room.

"Well, I didn't think he'd just…" Sam began to defend himself.

"He's not himself, Sam. He's a monster and he's hungry. You gotta be prepared to do the right thing." Samuel sighed, shaking his head as they set weapons on the table.

"I told you he'd kill me when he showed up." Dean's voice came out of the kitchen.

They looked over to see him hunched against a cabinet in the dark. The two hunters quickly drew their machetes.

"Did you feed?" Samuel demanded.

"I went to say goodbye to Elena... which, for the record, was a lousy idea." He said, walking out.

"Dean, answer the question." Samuel said sternly.

"You can relax, I didn't drink anyone." He sighed.

"Thank God." Samuel breathed with relief.

"But I came close." He admitted.

* * *

**Watseka**

"Why the hell didn't Sam call me? He has to know." Elena snapped as she threw on clothing.

"Elena maybe you shouldn't go." Jo said nervously.

"I can't not go. It's Dean. I have to help him." she said, shaking her head.

"He's too far gone, Elena. You can't fix vampirism. There's no way…" Jo said.

"I'll find a way. I'll figure it out. I just have to get to him. Where's my phone?" she said, scrambling around the room to find it.

"Elena you haven't even healed your head." Jo said, pointing at the blood that stained her forehead where she struck the wall.

"I don't have time." she snapped, finding her phone and dialing the number.

"Hello?" a voice on the other end.

"Elijah, thank God. I need your help. Tell me everything you know about the other kind of vampires, please." She said pleadingly, shoving her shoes on.

"What's going on, Elena?" he asked, concerned about the panic in her voice.

"Dean… he got turned… into the other kind of vampire." she said, her voice breaking on his name as she rubbed her head painfully.

"Elena… stop." Jo said, causing her to be still.

"Take a deep breath, heal your damn head, and get your senses together." The blonde instructed her.

Elena did as she said before nodding.

"Please, Elijah." She said, calmer.

"I don't know too much but… I know that there's something." He said.

"What?" she asked, perking up immediately.

"There's a cure."

* * *

**Limestone**

Dean slowly removed his jacket, stepping up to Samuel.

"All right. Do it." he said.

They were all interrupted from speaking by someone else appearing in the room. Someone a furious look and clenched fists.

"Back off." she snapped at Samuel before glaring at Sam. "You are not laying a hand on him."

Dean stared at Elena with wide eyes.

"You, why the hell didn't you call me? I should have been your first call!" she growled, glaring up at him.

"Why didn't you sense that he was in trouble when he was turned?" Sam fired back.

"I don't know." She admitted, taken aback by his question.

Why hadn't she thought of that yet? Why didn't she feel something?

"Elena, I can't be a monster. Samuel has to kill me. Please, I don't want you to be here." Dean sighed, keeping his distance from her for safety, flashes of him knocking her out going through his mind.

"Okay... if you insist..." Samuel said.

Elena turned to unleash her wrath on him.

"… or I can just turn you back." he said before she could do so.

Her mouth snapped shut and she looked satisfied before Dean stared at him with a confused look.

"What?" he said.

"What?!" Sam demanded after that.

Samuel gave him an odd look before turning back to Dean.

"I didn't drive all this way to kill you, Dean… I'm here to save you." he said.

"There's a cure. Elijah told me. But only if…" she began.

"He hasn't fed on anyone." Samuel assured her and she breathed a sigh of relief before reaching up and unconsciously rubbing her head where the wound was.

It was still twinging with pain. Neither Sam nor Samuel missed the devastatingly guilty look on Dean's face when he looked at her. Their eyes met and Elena's immediately looked sad at them. But they didn't walk to each other, both of them knowing that a certain distance should be kept between them. All four sat at the table, Elena and Dean across from each other.

"That's my grandfather's journal. Cure's an old Campbell recipe, kind of like the soup. No one's tried it since God knows. What I hear... this stuff is a bad trip." Samuel explained, glancing up at Dean.

"Awesome." Dean grumbled.

"Hey… the cure is good. But a lot of this is on you. You drink, you're done. It won't work. I'm talking one drop of human blood. So you have stay away from Elena. You have to stay away from humans in general." He said.

"I got it." Dean snapped.

" Do you? Because you will feed. It's a matter of time." Samuel said.

Elena slammed the journal shut with a furious look and Elena jumped slightly, scooting back. He noticed and regret flashed across his face as he knew that she was jumpy around him now.

"What else do we need?" she asked in a soft voice, refusing to look at him.

"Some stuff we got, some we gotta get. Trickiest thing on the list… blood of the fang that turned ya." Samuel said unwillingly.

"That guy was huge!" Sam stressed, his eyes widening.

"There's nothing in the recipe about easy." Samuel shrugged.

"I can get it." Dean said, rising.

"You're gonna walk right into the nest?" Samuel asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Well, I'm one of them, aren't I? So all I gotta do is get in there, get the guy alone, and... shoot him with so much dead man's blood that he'll think he's rushing a fraternity." Dean shrugged.

"I should come with you." Sam and Elena said at the same time.

"No. You both reek. You're like walking hamburgers. I gotta do this solo." He said.

"It doesn't matter if I reek. I can overpower any of those vampires. I have to come." Elena said, standing.

"I can't be anywhere near you." Dean warned her.

"Then you won't be. You kept me out of this when I should have been here. You won't do it again." She snapped, staring straight into his eyes.

Dean stared back at her.

"We haven't been able to find him yet." Sam reminded them, both him and Samuel shifting uncomfortably in the intensity of their glares at each other.

Dean reached back and grabbed his jacket, putting it on.

"No problem. I can smell him. Two miles east of town. You guys get the other crap and meet me there. You should stay with them." He said to Elena."

"I am coming with you." she said definitively.

Dean sighed before turning to the door, unwilling to argue anymore. Elena turned to follow him, sliding her hand into the duffle bag and pulling out her weapon of choice. Her dagger was tied onto her belt but she didn't want to use it. If it was a nest, there wouldn't be time to use it. The shining silver machete would have to do.

"Dean." Samuel held out a large syringe to him. "It's dead man's blood. Now, there's enough there to drop a linebacker, and then some."

Dean reached for it, able to smell the blood inside.

"Good luck." He said.

He nodded before walking out with a glance at Elena to see that she was following him. Sam began gathering supplies once they were gone and Samuel eyed him warily.

"What the hell's wrong with you, Sam?" he asked blatantly.

"Whaddya mean?" Sam asked, stopping and looking at his grandfather innocently.

"You knew about the cure!" Samuel said, his brow furrowing.

"What? No, I didn't." Sam scoffed.

"But we talked about it months ago." the older man said definitively.

"Not me. Must've been Christian or something." Sam shrugged.

"Huh. That's strange, cause if you had known, it'd be almost like you let him get turned. Get a man on the inside? Help us find that alpha vamp we've been looking for?"

An uncomfortable pause filled the room as Sam looked at him incredulously.

"Are you serious? You think I'd do something like that, risk my own brother?" Sam demanded.

There was another lengthy pause.

"What's wrong with you?" Sam said in an accusing tone.

"Look, I'm just relieved we can fix him." he said before he finished gathering the supplies and turned to walk out of the room.

* * *

As soon as they landed in the parking lot of the run-down warehouse, Dean stepped away from Elena. He glanced over at her and saw her looking anywhere but at him.

"Elena…" she glanced over at him and the look of utter sadness he saw in her eyes made his heart sink.

"You should stay out here. If I need you, I'll pray for you, okay? Let me scope out the place." he said.

Instead of arguing with him as he expected her to do, she nodded slowly. She hid behind a dumpster as Dean waited by the door with a rope tied around the handle. Finally two vampire came walking out and talking. He stopped the door from closing and slid inside, looking around. He managed to sneak through a hallway for a few minutes before his way was suddenly blocked by a body. He looked up to see a male vampire standing there.

"S'up?" the other vampire said.

"Hey. I'm..." Dean began, trying to be relaxed.

"The guy Boris turned outside the bar, right? Said to look out for you." the man said.

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Well." he smiled. "Glad you made it, man!"

He raised his hand for a fist bump and, after a second, Dean complied.

"Follow me." he led Dean through the hallways and into a cold room.

"So you must be starving."

"Uh..."

The vampire walked to a fridge full of blood bags. He slid the door open and pulled a bag out. Dean grimaced slightly before the other male turned to him, holding the bag out.

"Here ya go." he said.

Dean paused, searching for what to say to get out of it.

"I'm okay."

The other vampire looked at him oddly and Dean smiled easily.

"I killed so many people on the way over here, so..." he shrugged.

"Yeah, uh, about that... company line is we… we don't just kill people anymore... but you gotta tell me what that's like." the man said, grinning.

"Yeah. Yeah, first chance I get, I'll..." a smirk spreaded across Dean's face. "I'll show you myself."

"Sweet." He said, ripping the stopper off of the bag and taking a swig.

Dean could smell the blood and his throat suddenly felt like it ws made of sandpaper. But he forced himself to turn away. He followed Robert down a flight of stairs through a crowd of more vampires.

"Don't worry about them. They're jealous. The recruiters get to bang all the chicks. That's you now, bro." the man, Robert apparently, said.

"Recruiters?" Dean questioned.

"Yeah. Big man'll explain." Robert said as they entered the main room.

The young woman they were looking for originally, Kristin, was sitting at a desk typing on a laptop. The vampire who turned him, Boris, was leaning over.

"Be with you in a minute." He said, raising a finger without looking at them.

"Your skin is the black velvet of the night." He dictating to Kristin, who looked pale and drawn. "Nice. Stupid bitch'll eat that up, she'll be dying to meet."

Boris leaned in closer and took a long sniff of Kristin's hair and she recoiled. Dean looked around to see several female vampires locked in a cage sucking down blood from bags.

"Go get yourself some blood, sweetheart. Then march that little ass right back here, okay?"

Kristin stood from the chair and locked eyes with Dean before exiting the room.

"Thank goodness. Thought the hunter chopped your pretty head." Boris said as he walked to Dean, a thrilled look on his face.

"Naw. I got away. Sorry, what's a hunter?" Dean asked, playing dumb.

"You'll see if he finds us. You'll see him inside out." Boris laughed manically and Dean fought back a scowl. "You eaten?"

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Good. You'll need your strength." He said, walking around Dean.

"For?" Dean questioned.

"Robert didn't tell you?" he snorted before getting in Dean's face. "How old do I look?"

Dean paused, disgusted by this vampire.

"Thirty-three?" He guessed.

"You're off... by about... six centuries? And these are the best days in the last six hundred years to be a vampire." he laughed as he began circling him again. "Dracula? Anne Rice? Please. These stupid little brats are so horny they've reinvented us as Prince Charming with a Volvo. They... want a promise ring with fangs, so I give it to 'em."

One of the vampire girls snarled as he reached through the bars and grabbed her hair.

"You… you go out and you get them, and you bring 'em home to me." he said, smirking.

He released the girl and she fell back with a cry.

"So what's with the cages?" Dean asked, glancing at them.

"Oh, that's just, y'know... till they're compliant. Eventually these girls will go out, and they'll fetch me boys like you, and around and around we go..." Boris explained.

"Gotta say, I'm impressed. This whole system, it's... it's all you?" Dean said, doing his best to sound casual.

"No, no, no, no...I just...implement, y'know? Make sure you all fall in line." The bushy-haired vampire pointed to the ceiling.

"It's his... our father's..." he said with reference, pointing up at the stained glass decoration on the ceiling.

"Your father's?" Dean said, the language somewhat familiar.

"Aren't you the curious one?" Boris said, tilting his head to the side.

"Oh, you don't know the half of it." Dean nodded.

"In due time. You... you want the private tour, don't you?" Boris questioned, leaning in even closer and violating all of Dean's personal space rules.

"Thought you'd never ask." He said, trying not to vomit.

Boris stepped away and made a beckoning motion with his finger. When he turned his back on Dean, he pulled out the needle. As he stepped towards Boris, he uncapped the needle. When he raised, ready to plunge it, one drop leaked out onto the floor. Boris heard it and quickly turned as he tried to stab it into him. He grabbed Dean's arm and moved behind him, twisting it behind his back. With his free hand, he grabbed Dean into a chokehold.

"You playing games with me, boy?" He growled.

He squeezed Dean's arm until he was forced to let go of the syringe. Then he began laughing in triumph. But then, suddenly, interrupting his laughter, he glanced up at the ceiling. Whispers began filling the room and Dean listened to the with confusion as Boris let him go. The caged girls began limply falling to the floor. After a moment, Dean's eyes rolled back into his head and a series of images flashed through his mind.

* * *

Elena looked up at the building as she got an uneasy feeling followed by a slight screeching noise, like when she heard the angels trying to communicate without being in vessels. She started forward but was stopped by someone blocking her.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded of John, tired of seeing him showing up.

"You are left unprotected by Gabriel's absense and Castiel is away fighting a civil war. You need a guide. I am here to guide you along with the others you've seen." He said simply.

"Well, my abilities might be failing me so…" she snapped.

"They are not failing you. You were blocked from sensing Dean's danger." John said.

Her eyes widened as fury filled her.

"What? Who blocked me?" she growled, stepping forward.

"It was necessary for this to happen to him. It will reveal many things to you. Things about Sam and about the Campbells. It was supposed to happen and you couldn't have stopped it. All will be set right." he said formally and Elena became even more suspicious of him.

"Go away." She snapped, angry that someone had dared to block her from saving Dean.

He stared at her warily.

"Keep digging into Sam's state. There is something there." he warned her before disappearing.

Elena gripped the machete and ran inside to see what was going on.

* * *

**So Cold – Breaking Benjamin**

Dean blinked quickly as he came out of the onslaught of alarming images. He rolled over onto his back, groaning as his mind pounded with pain and his vision was blurry. He looked around to see that Boris was up and releasing the female vampires from their cages. He rose quickly, backing away. One of the vampire guards rushed down the stairs to attack him and he quickly injected him with the dead man's blood.

"Go get him!" Boris shouted to the rest of the vamps.

Another guard ran towards but, before he could reach him, a body dropped down from the upper catwalk in front of Dean and decaptitated him in one swipe of her machete.

"Run!" She shouted, pushing him backwards.

Elena and Dean hightailed it up the stairs where three vampires ran at them. Dean ripped his machete out and they made quick work of the three. Robert ran out just as Elena was tossing a body back at the advancing vampires and he was no match for Dean's weapon. Finally, the swarm of female vampires reached them and blood began splattering everywhere as Elena and Dean both swung their weapons left and right to dispose of the creatures. If the vampires could stop for a moment and look, they would be in awe at the effortlessly dance that the two did around each other, as if they could read each others minds and know where the other was going to be. If they could appreciate it, they would admire the fact that the two worked perfectly together.

* * *

Sam and Samuel looked around at the warehouse as they pulled up in Samuel's van.

"This must be the place." Samuel said.

"Shh..." Sam murmured, looking around with a suspicious look on his face. Suddenly a hand smashed through the driver's side window and reached towards Samuel.

* * *

After taking care of the female group, there were two different swarms coming at them from two different directions. In one glance, Elena and Dean agreed to go separate directions.

"I love you." she said simply before running into her own group with a murderous glare.

* * *

Samuel pushed his way out of the van to see that Sam was already out with the vampire slammed over the hood of the van. He lifted his machete and slammed it down on the vamp's neck, killing him instantly.

"So much for undercover." Samuel commented.

"Let's go." Sam sighed.

* * *

Dean leapt over the railing back into the main room, glancing around for his sire. The vamps were all taken care of that he knew of. He hadn't seen Elena again so he assumed that she might have been off dealing with more. She could handle herself.

"You've stopped nothing, you know that?" Boris' voice came from the corner. "This is much bigger than you and me."

He stepped out and Dean's body tensed up when he saw that Boris had a hold on Elena's arm. She was splattered in blood and looking very pleased with herself.

* * *

Up above the room and down the hallway, Sam and Samuel were stepping around headless vampire bodies that were strewn everywhere, the work of the hunter and his guardian plain to see for them.

"Looks like your brother has some Campbell in him after all." Samuel said grimly.

"This isn't just Dean. It's both of them." Sam corrected him.

* * *

Dean glared at Boris where his hand was squeezing Elena's upper arm. When he looked up at Elena's face, she was smirking at him. Suddenly her hand flew up and she whirled Boris around to stumble backwards, propelling him towards Dean. He looked shocked at her strength but even more so at the white light that suddenly bursted out of her hand into his eyes. In the next moment, his head was lying on the floor and Dean was standing behind him glaring at it with his machete still raised in the air. Their eyes met briefly before they heard a noise and looked up to see Sam and Samuel there.

"You okay?" Sam asked them both.

"Yeah, we're good." Dean sighed.

* * *

**The Only One – Evanescence (through the end)**

They all watched as Samuel squirted a syringe of Boris' blood into a jar that held the cure potion. Dean was standing far away from them, holding his stomach with a sick look on his face as if he could sense that this was going to be unpleasant. Elena and Dean didn't even bother to wash off the blood that was covering them, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

"If this works, you know it's not gonna be a kiddy ride, you know that." Samuel warned him.

"That's great. Light her up." Dean growled.

"So what'd you see in there?" Sam said.

They all turned to face him, surprised at the slight hint of eagerness in his voice.

"What?" Dean demanded.

"In the nest… what'd you see?" he repeated.

"Sam, I can't hear you… your blood is so frickin' loud, okay? Just… just back off." the older brother snapped, watching as Samuel poured the potion into a coffee cup. "All right, gimme the damn cure."

Dean took it and sniffed it before recoiling. His eyes met Elena's and she nodded slowly. With a grim smile, he lifted the mug.

"L'chaim." He said before chugging the potion down messily, trying to keep it down.

Nothing happened and he spit a little bit back out.

"I don't think it…"

Suddenly he spun around and retched, projectile vomiting blood into the wastebasket. Sam and Samuel remained in place but Elena ran to him and collapsed to her knees next to him, rubbing his back soothingly as he choked out the blood.

"Is it working?" Sam questioned.

"Either that or he's dying." Samuel said, drawing his machete just in case.

Dean's hand shot out and gripped Elena's as he struggled to breath. Suddenly his head snapped back and he clutched his stomach, moaning in agony. His fangs descended and his eyes were bloodshot. Elena felt an unpleasant feeling in her head, as if she was unwillingly being sucked into something. That's when she began to see images. It took her a moment to realize that she was seeing Dean's memories of being a vampire in reverse. Some of it was stuff she saw and some of it she didn't. She winced as the scene at the motel played out. Dean was in too much pain to react to any of it. She had no idea why she was seeing this. Maybe Dean wanted her to see this or maybe it was part of their soulmate bond or her abilities at archangel status that she'd not fully experimented with.

Then she saw an alleyway with Boris hovering over Dean as he punched him. Out of the corner of Dean's eye, they both saw Sam standing there. He didn't move, watching as Boris bit his wrist and put it in Dean's mouth. A corner of Sam's mouth lifted in a smirk and Dean's vision froze on that for a moment before it ended. Dean's eyes snapped shut and he let go of Elena falling backwards unconscious. She leaned over him and put her hands on his face, comprehending what she just saw.

"Dean?" she said with uncertainty.

Suddenly his eyes popped open and they were clear. His eyes searched her face and she knew that he'd willingly pulled her into his mind at the question that was prevalent. Had she seen it too? She nodded slowly as Sam and Samuel walked over, helping Dean up along with Elena. Sam patted him on the chest but they both eyed him strangely.

"Come on." she murmured softly. "Let's get cleaned up."

Sam and Samuel let go of him as she steered him into the bathroom. He leaned against the counter weakly as she shut the door. When she turned to him, he was staring at her with wide, emotional eyes.

"Elena…" he choked out.

"Shh." She whispered, putting her finger on his lips.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered brokenly around the finger.

She leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

"It's not your fault, you hear me? I don't blame you for a thing. I still love you and I'm not even a little bit scared of you." she assured him.

"But you couldn't even look at me." he sighed.

"Because I was so ashamed of myself. I should have stayed with you. I should have been here to prevent all of this." she said regretfully.

He reached out and put his hands on her cheeks.

"If I can't blame myself, you can't blame yourself either." He mumbled.

Elena sighed and nodded.

"Deal." She agreed.

Then she turned around and put the shower on hot water. They stripped their clothes off, neither of them even caring about sex at that point. They just wanted to wash the blood off and hold each other. And that's exactly what they did.

"He's not Sam, Elena." Dean said.

She squeezed her eyes shut and a tear slid out of them.

"I know." She murmured.

* * *

When they left the bathroom, Elena magicking clothes onto their bodies, Sam and Samuel were packing up the supplies. Elena picked up her phone to call Jo and tell her that everything was all right.

"Hi. So, what'd you see?" Sam asked instantly.

"What?" Dean said, confused.

"In the nest. What'd you see?" the younger brother sighed.

Dean paused, staring at him.

"Uhm... well, I'm still trying to work through it, but, uh... I'm pretty sure they're not figuring anything out on their own. They're getting their orders from the top... where to go next, everything." He explained.

"Top, as in..." Samuel trailed off.

"Their alpha." Dean said, his eyes flashign to the older hunter. "At least, that's what I think it is. They've got some sort of psychic thing happening. He sends 'em, uh... I don't know… messages?

"Saying what?" Sam asked.

"Honestly? Recruitment drive." Dean said as Elena hung up the phone. "Their alpha's building an army."

"Well, that's comforting." Samuel sighed.

"That's not the worst." Dean offered.

"Then what is?" Sam scoffed.

Dean paused, glancing at Elena.

"We don't scare them anymore."

* * *

"Hey, so… I'm sorry about all of this. If I had been there sooner…" Sam said as they walked to the Impala.

Dean and Elena exchanged a wary glance.

"Yeah. I know, you always got my back. No matter what happens, I can always count on you, right, Sammy?" Dean nodded, glancing at his brother.

Sam paused slightly, staring at him.

"Yeah. Of course, Dean." He nodded, climbing into the car.

Elena and Dean looked at each other, neither of them believing a word.

* * *

"I don't understand, Father, why Gabriel is not guiding the girl anymore." Michael said, staring at his father who was still in the prophet's form with a white suit on.

"Because there are more important things for Gabriel to be doing." God answered simply.

"She is stubborn. I can see so much of my brother in her, it's amazing she has not followed in his footsteps and become a trickster." The archangel said, almost sounding grumpy.

"I also want her to challenge you, Michael, as she challenges so many others. You will find this to be the hardest job you've ever done. Trust me." God said.

* * *

**Author's Note – I hope you liked it! Please review!**

**Go back and read #3 on the list at the top if you didn't please!**


	9. Chapter 8 - Revised Version

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or SPN**

**This is the rewrite of the eight chapter. I hope it's a little better for you.**

* * *

_Elena stared in the mirror, her eyes wide and the dark circles underneath them standing out on her pale skin. The wound on her neck was still unhealed but it was no longer bleeding._

"_Elena?" a voice said outside the door._

"_I'm fine." She said hoarsely, a tear sliding down her cheek._

"_Sweetie, he's awake and asking for you." a different, female voice said._

_Elena bit her lip and her head dropped down heavily._

"_How is Jo?" she asked hesitantly._

"_She's fine, just resting." The first voice assured her._

_Elena sighed and sank to her knees on the bathroom rug, more tears escaping from her burning eyes._

"_Elena?" the second voice asked worredly._

"_I'll be out soon." She said, brushing her hair away from her face and choking back her need to cry._

_Her hand went up to her neck and lay over the wound, her eyes sliding closed as she let the skin heal up. Then she stood and washed the blood off, washed her face, and pulled her hair up into a ponytail. Once she opened the door, she walked out, nodding at Caroline and Damon before walking down hall and the stairs quietly. Everyone else was gathered in the living room. The petite blonde hunter was still asleep on the couch but she was healed of her wounds thanks to Elena. She continued past them and down into the basement. The door was closed and locked tightly. Elena peered through the bars on the window. _

_He was sitting on the cot inside the small room with his elbows on his spread knees and his head in his hands. He looked up slowly at her approach and his eyes met hers._

"_Elena…" he choked out, his eyes shining. "… I'm so sorry."_

* * *

**24 HOURS EARLIER**

"I'm Agent Summers and this is Agent Rosenberg."

They held out their ID's in front of them and the police officer leaned forward, squinting at them.

"Aren't you two a little young to be FBI agents?" he asked skeptically.

Jo's eyes narrowed and she leaned forward, glaring at him.

"It's exactly those kinds of bullshit comments that get you sent to sensitivity seminars, Brian." She said, flicking his badge before turning to walk off.

"Don't mind my partner, she gets very defensive of our status. We are two of the youngest on the force." Elena explained, leaning onto the counter with a slight smile.

"I didn't mean to offend her." he said, staring over where Jo was pacing impatiently, waiting on Elena.

"Don't worry about it." she said, smiling at him before walking after Jo.

"Nice bad cop, Harvelle. I think you made him piss himself." Elena said, smirking.

"It's called demanding respect, Gilbert." She replied, grinning as well.

"You go girl." Elena said ironically, rolling her eyes.

They walked into the interrogation room that they were directed to and found a woman with banages on her cheek and throat.

"Hi, are you Ellen Hutter?" Elena asked, smiling at her.

"Who the hell are you?" a voice said as the door opened and closed.

They turned to see the sheriff walking in with a cup of water. He handed it to the woman and then sat next to her, wrapping his arm around her.

"Agents Rosenberg and Summers." Jo said simply, gesturing between her and Elena as they flashed their badges again.

"And what the hell is the FBI doing talking to my wife?" he snapped.

"This is the fourth attack in the same building. It's snagged our attention and your wife is our only witness." Elena said simply, raising an eyebrow at his harsh, defensive tone.

"So? Why are the feds here? We have it under control." He said simply.

"I can see that." Jo scoffed. "It's the fourth attack in a week."

"This is a county case." He argued.

"Not anymore. We're claiming jurisdiction. If you have an issue with it, call our superior." Elena said, handing him a business card with Bobby's fake FBI number on it.

"I'll do just that." Sheriff Hutter growled, snatching the card away and walking to the phone on the wall by the door.

Elena and Jo watched silently with their arms crossed similarly as he spoke to Bobby, who they were certain was being his usual snarky self.

"You have ten minutes." He said once he hung up the phone.

"Tell us what you saw, Mrs. Hutter." Jo said, all of them sitting down.

The woman looked at her husband with uncertainty before sighing and launching into her story.

* * *

"Hey, did you get there okay?" Dean asked into the phone.

"Yeah, how are things going there?" Elena said from the other end.

Dean glanced around where Sam was approaching from the police station with a bunch of papers in his hands.

"They're fine. We're just now getting the names of the missing people. So you think you'll be here by tomorrow?" he questioned.

"I don't know, probably. We're working a possible monster that's hanging around a museum. If we find the monster quickly, I'm only an hour away from you. I can pop in." Elena said, sounding a little distracted.

"Oh, that's interesting. What are you posing as?" Dean asked.

"FBI of course." she replied.

"We've been a bad influence on you." he said proudly.

"Yeah, I'll put you down to pay my bail if we get caught. We're about to head over to the museum to scope it out. I'll talk to you later, okay? Let me know if you need anything with the case or with Sam. I'll be there." Elena assured him.

"I will. Talk to you later. Love you. Be careful." he said.

"Love you too." She nodded.

"What was that?" Sam asked once he hung up.

"What? Nothin. What do you got?" Dean asked.

Sam regarded him suspiciously before handing him a stack of missing persons flyers. Dean thumbed through them quickly.

"Six girls in seven days, which is more disappearances than this city has seen in over a year… all about the same age." He said.

"Hmm. Sounds like we have a monster with a preference." Dean commented.

"Well, half a dozen girls, late teens, a shower away from greatness. Sounds like a profile. I mean, what else they got in common?" Sam questioned.

"Well... six directions to go here. Pick a number." Dean said, looking up at him.

"Seven. Another call just came in today." Sam corrected him as they climbed into the Impala.

* * *

"So what made you so eager to come with me?" Jo asked as they walked around the museum looking for any signs of their monster.

Mrs. Hutter was the only victim to survive the thing's attack. She was the manager of the museum. The attacks all happened late at night and the victims all had their heads torn off.

"I just figured I would give Dean and Sam some alone time. They haven't had much lately." Elena shrugged.

Jo looked over at her skeptically. The thing with Crowley was only a week ago and Sam and Dean got plenty of alone time during that.

"Is it not enough that I want to spend time with you, Harvelle?" Elena asked innocently.

"I suppose it is, Gilbert." Jo sighed, grinning and letting it go.

Elena smiled as well but as soon as she turned away to walk into a room, her smile disappeared and she thought back to the night that they'd gotten Bobby's soul back.

"_Elena, it's okay." Jess assured Elena as she stood in front of the closed bedroom door._

"_No part of this is okay! I'm seeing a bunch of dead people!" she said, staring around warily._

"_We can't hurt you." Ruby said as if this fact was particularly bothersome to her._

"_And why, of all beings, are you here?" Elena snapped, glaring at her._

"_It's part of her punishment." John finally spoke up._

_She looked over at him with uncertainty._

"_Helping the very people she did everything to harm is worse punishment than any torture she would receive in hell, is it not, Ruby?" he said, his eyes flickering over to the demon._

_Ruby squinted back at him, looking slightly angry._

"_So this is really Ruby? And that's Jess and you're really John Winchester? You're not projections of my mind?" Elena questioned._

"_We're real." Jess confirmed definitively._

_Elena focused on John._

"_Why do you look like you did from 1977?" she asked._

_He looked a little bit annoyed at all of her questions._

"_This is my age that you are most familiar with. It was thought that you would be more receptive to it." he explained._

"_Who sent you? Why are you here?"_

"_To help you." Jess offered, her face showing the most sympathy and kindess compared to the other two._

_Elena sighed and shook her head._

"_This is impossible. You are all dead. You shouldn't be here and I shouldn't be talking to you." Elena said, sitting on the bed far away from Jess._

"_We're here. Nothing you can do about it." Ruby said simply._

"_You could be a little gentler." Jess sighed._

"_She stabbed me in the heart. Excuse me if I don't sugarcoat it for my killer." The demon snapped._

"_Enough." John said, his eyes narrowed._

_The door suddenly opened and Dean walked in. Elena looked around to see that the apparitions were gone._

"Hey Elena come look at this." Jo said.

She walked into the room where Jo was.

"This is where Mrs. Hutter was attacked." She said, gesturing to the blood on the ground.

"Yeah?" Elena said questioningly.

"Well I found something." Jo said, holding up a rather large ring.

Elena took it from her and her eyes widened.

"I know what this is." She said.

"What?" Jo questioned, her brow furrowing.

"Lapis lazuli."

* * *

"I'm Agent Harris and this is Agent Giles." Dean said as they showed their badges to the father of the newest missing girl.

"You're here about Kristin?" he asked as they walked into the house.

"Yes sir. What can you tell us about her?" Sam questioned

"Kristin's a good kid. A little naive, sure... you try to be a good parent. Girls are hard." He sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Sam and Dean exchanged a furrowed brow look.

"Right. Well, we'd just like to find your daughter." Sam said, looking upstairs where her room probably was.

"Last door on the left." Her father said, pointing upstairs.

"Thanks." Dean nodded.

They turned to climb the stairs. Once they got to the top, Sam glanced back at the father.

"What do you think he was talking about?" he asked quietly, looking back at Dean. "Drugs?"

Dean shrugged as he opened the door. They were immediately met with blood red walls and posters of vampires covering the walls.

"Oh, it is so much worse." Dean said disgustedly.

"Vampires?" Sam snorted.

"Ah, these aren't vampires, man, these..." Sam shut the door behind them and Dean glanced back at it to see a full-sized cutout of a 'vampire'. "… these are douche bags." Dean scoffed.

"Yeah." Sam agreed as they looked the room.

"Wow." The older brother said, shaking his head.

Sam walked to the bed and began flipping her covers up to find anything she might want to hide. Finally he found her laptop under her pillow.

"Aha! All right." He moved to sit at her desk. "Let's see what we can see."

He turned on the laptop and it made a woman's screaming noise as soon as it switched on. An intense looking fake vampire popped up and they both flinched as Dean leaned over Sam's shoulder.

"Th-that's just... uncomfortable." Sam stammered.

"What's he so bummed out about?" Dean said, shaking his head as he looked around where he was standing.

Sam started pressing keys and a password prompt popped up as Dean caught sight of a paperback book on the desk entitled 'My Summer Blood'. The cover depicted a man standing over a sleeping teenager's bed.

"Look at this. He's watching her sleep. How is that not rape-y?" Dean said, shoving the book towards Sam.

"I gotta concentrate here, Dean." Sam sighed as he tried 'Dracula' for the password.

The laptop made the screaming noise again and the younger hunter jumped slightly, an annoyed look on his face.

"He could hear the blood rushing inside her, almost taste it. He tried desperately to control himself..."

Another scream sounded from the laptop as Dean read.

"...Romero knew their love was impossible… Romero? Really?" Dean scoffed.

"Dean. Shut up." Sam snapped.

"This is a national bestseller. How is that possible?" he said, ignoring his brother as he walked to the bed and picked up one of the vampire pillows.

"Hey, try, uh… Lautner."

"Wait… he's a werewolf." Sam said as he typed in the password. "How do you even know who that is?"

"Are you kidding me? That kid's everywhere. It's a freakin' nightmare." Dean said, rolling his eyes.

The laptop rejected the password yet again and Sam's face got more frustrated.

"Hey, how many T's are there in Pattins… That's it." Sam said, the computer finally accepting the password. We're in! Ha! All right."

He began to look through the social networking site that showed up most in her history.

"Well?" Dean asked, approaching the desk again.

"Well, her inbox is full, from some guy claiming to be a vampire." Sam shrugged.

"A real vampire?" he asked skeptically, his eyes scanning the messages.

"Well, uh... 'I can only meet you at night... I don't trust myself with you...the call of your blood is too strong.' Vampires fishing for victims?" Sam shrugged.

"Probably just a human mouth-breather, right?" Dean wondered.

"On the other hand… talk about easy prey." He suggested.

"For actual vamps." Dean nodded, wondering

"Yeah. I mean, these chicks are just throwing themselves at you. All you gotta do is... I dunno. Write bad poetry." Sam said, gesturing to the computer.

"Huh!" Dean said, looking around.

"Wow. This guy wanted to meet her at a place called The Black Rose." Sam said, reading off the most recent message.

"Gimme a break..." Dean said, rolling his eyes.

"Just reporting the news." Sam said simply.

"It's probably just your standard-issue perv, right?" Dean questioned.

Sam closed the laptop and turned to face him with a shrug.

* * *

"Okay. So now, you're sure it's vampires? A hundred percent?" Sam asked, leaning against the Impala as Dean loaded stuff into the trunk.

The sun was just beginning to set and they were getting ready to go to the Black Rose to scope the place out.

"Definitely. We got a pattern now. Kids go missing, blood bank van gets jumped. This is the fourth town." Samuel said from over the phone. "Clincher is, this last hit? Driver was found, throat ripped out."

"Okay. They grab kids, that's food, right? But if they already got a bunch of walking, talking juice bars... why bother with the blood mobile? It doesn't add up." Sam said, sounding confused.

"Find the nest. Figure it out." Samuel said simply.

Sam sighed before hanging up.

* * *

Elena and Jo were sitting in the main room of the museum waiting. Elena was holding the ring in her hand.

"You're sure the vampire will come back to get that?" Jo asked.

"He or she can't go into the sunlight without this. So they'll be wanting it back, trust me." Elena said.

"I thought you said these vampires were super careful not to get caught. Why would he or she be so reckless?" Jo asked.

"I don't know how I didn't see it before. But the brutal attacks, the ripped off heads… it's all signs of a vampire. A very out of control vampire…. a ripper." Elena explained.

"You've come across… a ripper… before?" Jo questioned.

Elena nodded and glanced over at her.

"Stefan. That's what happens when he drinks human blood. He gets completely out of control. When he's on animal blood or blood bags, he can keep it under control." She explained.

"Oh… well I've never fought this kind of vampire before. I might be useless." The blonde warned her.

Elena gestured to the stake in her hands.

"Just aim for the heart."

They sat there for hours with nothing. They talked about different things, Jo growing up in a bar with a hunter for a father and Elena growing up in a small town with no knowledge of supernatural creatures until she was seventeen. Elena was about to give up hope when a clattering sound reached their ears and they glanced at each other.

"Here we go." she sighed.

* * *

"Well, you wanted Emo chicks, I think we hit Ground Zero." Dean said as a waitress in a black leather skimpy outfit gave them their drinks. "Thank you."

He watched as he walked away with a thoughtful look.

"You think she wears all that leather to the beach?"

Sam rolled his eyes and began to canvas the bar.

"When was the last time we had a beer together, anyway?" Dean said, taking a sip of his beer.

"There." Sam nodded without answering his older brother's question.

They both studied a male in a black coat and a dog collar chatting up a pretty teenaged girl.

"Whaddya think? He's hittin' on her hard enough. Real?" Sam questioned.

"I dunno. It's hard to tell." Dean said, looking around and catching sight of two other men in similar situations. "Hey, we got multiple choice."

"Great. Three of them and two of us." Sam sighed.

They both watched as another man walked up to one of their suspects and began kissing him. After taking a moment to process what they were seeing, Dean spoke up.

"Okay. Make that two of them."

Sam spotted the dog collared male escort his date out of the bar.

"One's on the move." He said, setting his drink down and standing up.

"All right. You go with Efron, I got Bieber." Dean said and they parted ways.

* * *

They were walking together instead of splitting up. Both of them had stakes clutched in their hands and Elena was cursing that she didn't have any vervain with her.

"Hello?" she said, looking around. "I have your ring."

There was another loud clatter and Elena glanced at Jo, nodding slightly. Suddenly a figure jumped out at them and threw Elena into the wall, immediately going after Jo, growling hungrily. Elena slid to the ground but jumped back up, seizing his shirt and throwing him off of her and into the wall. He bounced off and glared at her.

"Who the hell are you?" he growled.

"Elena Gilbert. You?" she said, smirking at him.

He stopped as his eyes widened and he stared at her in fear.

"Gilbert?"

She cocked her head to the side, confused.

"Yeah." She said, taken aback at his recognition of her name.

"Mystic Falls?"

"Yes." Elena said, wondering how this guy possibly knew that.

Suddenly he turned and ran off as fast as he could, a blur in their vision. It was strange enough that he ran but even stranger considering that he was a ripper and he had two blood-filled girls in front of him.

"Oh no you don't." she snapped, picking up her stake before running after him.

* * *

"Are you sure, baby? Are you ready to join me in eternity?" the man said, pressing the woman against the wall and kissing her neck.

"Oh my God, totally." She moaned.

He was about to take a bit when Dean yanked him off and threw him backwards.

"Hey!" the male protested.

"Go… get outta here!" Dean snapped to the girl, ignoring him.

"Wait, what..." he was interrupted by Dean throwing him agaisnt the dumpster with his arm across his chest holding him there. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Open your mouth!" Dean growled, glaring at him.

He did as he was told, opening his mouth to reveal two fake fangs on his canine teeth. Dean shot him a disgusted look.

"Take those out. Take 'em out!" he ordered.

He obeyed and revealed that his mouth was competely normal.

"Oh, for the love of... What're you, twelve?" Dean said, rolling his eyes.

Then he noticed something and looked closer.

"Are you wearing glitter?" He said, a grimace forming on his face..

"I only do it to get laid, man!" the boy shrugged.

"Does it work?" Dean asked, suddenly interested.

The male shrugged and nodded.

"I'll be damned. All right, mmmbop your way outta here. Go, go!" he kicked the boy in the ass as he ran off. "And use a condom!"

* * *

Elena tackled the vampire to the ground and he immediately turned over and threw her off.

"I don't want to hurt you. I can't hurt you. Please…" he began.

"I could shatter you into a million pieces. But first you're going to tell me how you know me." Elena said, seizing his neck and driving him into the wall.

Jo ran in and watched the scene with wide eyes.

"We've been told to keep our hands off of you. The Originals…" he choked out.

"How did you know I'm from Mystic Falls?" she growled.

"They put a protection on the town, said that the residents were all under their protection. And they said that if anyone messed with Elena Gilbert, they would face the wrath of the Originals and the angels." He wheezed.

Elena opened her mouth to say something else but the vampire looked past her with wide eyes into the corner. She turned her head to see the young John standing there.

"What the…" he began, shocked.

"You can see him?" she asked.

"Who is that, Elena?" Jo said, obviously not recognizing the younger version of the Winchester patriarch.

"What are you doing here?" Elena demanded, facing him.

The vampire took her momentary distraction as a chance to break her hold on him turned to run off. She ran forward and grabbed the back of his jacket.

"No you don't." she snapped before driving the stake she was holding into his heart.

He collapsed to the ground and she sighed down at his body. It wasn't as though she was going to get anymore information from him but she was still frustrated.

"Dammit!" she growled, whirling around to face the newcomer.

"What the hell? You can't keep showing up out of nowhere! I had that under control until you appeared!" she shouted at him, starting forward.

"I came to see if you needed help." He said.

"Elena, seriously, who is this?" Jo asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." she breathed, staring at John. "I don't need your help. I had it under control. Why are you here? Why are you helping me at all?" she snapped.

"It will be revealed soon." He said cryptically.

"It will be revealed now or I'm going to throwing a fucking fit." She snapped, not in the mood for his vagueness.

He reminded her of the angels.

"Go to the motel, Elena. Sleep tonight. You will find peace." He said simply before disappearing.

"Was that guy an angel?" Jo asked.

"I have no idea." She admitted.

* * *

Dean sighed, watching the man run off before he turned to walk out of the alley.

"You're pretty." A distinctly male voice said.

Dean turned to find himself face-to-face with a freaky looking guy with bushy hair.

"I'm sorry?" he said, wondering if he was hearing right.

"I said... you're pretty." He repeated.

"Yeah, sorry again, pal." Dean chuckled. "I don't play for your team."

The man suddenly launched out and grabbed Dean, throwing him through the air. He landed on the dumpster hard and rolled off into a pile of garbage bags. He choked, taking a few moments to recover himself as he stood. Dazed, he turned to see the creature, whatever it was, approaching him. He bent down and grabbed a pipe, taking a swing at the large man. He ducked the attack easy and pinned Dean against the dumpster, punching him several times. It felt like being hit by a truck each time.

Sam heard the commotion, running into the alley and quickly surveying the situation. He stopped suddenly and watched with a slightly fascinated look. Dean was lying limply against the dumpster, his fight all but gone. The man pinned him with his right arm across his chest, just below his throat. Then he brought his left wrist up to his mouth and fangs descended, showing that he was a vampire. Dean watched, helpless and unable to move. He was not aware of Sam standing there watching, too panicked with the monster's actions to notice. The vampire brought his wrist to Dean's mouth, smearing the blood all over it. The hunter let out a gutteral noise as a few drops slid into his mouth and down his throat.

Sam's mouth suddenly twitched up into a smirk. The vampire listened, making sure that Dean swallowed some of his blood. Suddenly Sam pulled a machet out of his coat.

"No!" he yelled, rushing forward.

The man released Dean, allowing him to collapse to the ground, and faced off with Sam. The vampire and the hunter sized each other up for a moment. Then Sam jumped forward, making a few slashes with the machete, which the monster easily evaded. He laughed and waved to Sam before running off and climbing up the wall to escape. Dean was lying on the ground leaning against the dumpster, panting with blood all over his mouth.

"Sammy…" he said weakly.

Sam looked at him, doing his best to look shocked and concerned.

* * *

The younger brother shut all of the curtains as Dean held a hand to his head. The noises of the city around him were all amplified in his head.

"Oh my God, what is that sound?" he groaned, leaning against the wall.

"What sound, Dean?" Sam asked, looking around for what he could be talking about.

Dean walked to the bedside table and pushed over the lamp, causing it to crash to the floor. A passing fire trucks siren and honking grew louder and Dean leaned his head against the wall. He could hear the sound of the television in the next room and it was driving him insane.

"Hey, c'mon, keep it down, dammit!" he yelled, slamming his fist down on the wall.

He turned and winced at the bulbs of the light fixture hangin from the ceiling.

"Please, please shut that off... geez..." he pleaded.

Sam turned the light off but it didn't help much. Every single noise that he heard was defeaning, from his brother's footsteps to the click of his watch. Dean suddenly heard a thumping noise and he looked at Sam, realizing that it was his heartbeat.

"Dean... you should sit down..." Sam began.

"You sit down." He snapped back, sitting on the edge of the bed and cradling his head in his hands.

Suddenly a freight train passing a few miles away reached his ears and he winced, pulling at his hair.

"Of all the ways to die, I never thought I'd be going out like this." he grumbled, his heart sinking.

Why wasn't Elena there? Shouldn't her danger radar have been going off? Of course, Sam wanted to call her but Dean didn't want her there. She would try to fix something that was unfixable at this point and it would be too painful for her to watch him die.

"Dean, nobody is going out." Sam sighed.

"Samuel is gonna kill me when he gets here." Dean said.

"No, Dean, he's not!" Sam exclaimed, shocked at his words.

"Yes he is, cause I'm gonna ask him to because you won't do it. And Elena sure as hell won't do it." Dean growled, standing up and pacing.

"Okay, just hold on a second..." Sam said, trying to get ahold of the situation.

"For what, huh? Look at me!" he shouted.

"We can figure this out!" Sam said, trying to convince him.

"How?!" Dean yelled.

Sam had no answer and Dean suddenly noticed something. Sam's heartbeat was rather calm for the situation. He stared at him suspiciously.

"Why aren't you freaked out?" he demanded.

"Of course I am!" Sam scoffed.

"Really? Cause I can hear your heartbeat, and it's pretty damned steady." Dean snapped.

"That's cause I'm... I'm trying to remain calm. Dean, look… Samuel will know what to do." Sam said, taking his mind off of his heartbeat.

"C'mon, man, I'm a monster, okay? This is not a problem that you spit-ball. We gotta deal with this before I hurt somebody." Dean said, shaking his head.

There was an uncomfortable pause before Dean held his head and groaned.

"How's it feel?" Sam finally asked.

"Now? Now you wanna talk about my feelings?" Dean demanded.

"No, I mean... physically." The younger brother sighed.

"How do you think it feels? Not good!" he growled, crossing towards the bathroom.

"Where you going?" Sam asked.

"Bathroom, okay? News flash, Mr. Wizard… vampires pee!" he snapped, storming into the bathroom and slamming the door closed.

He leaned over, sighing as he splashed water on his face. Then he looked up at his reflection and stared at his mouth. He carefully lifted his lip with his finger to reveal that his fangs had already grown in just above his regular teeth. He closed his eyes, hanging his head in despair. In all that was happening, all he could think of was Elena. If he could just see her again before… before it was over. He glanced at the door and bit his lip, a habit he picked up from his girl. Then he reached down and turned the water on again.

After five minutes, Sam glanced at the door with a suspicious look. He walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door.

"Dean?" he said.

After a few moments of silence except for the water running, he pushed the door open to find that it was empty. The window was open and the blinds were hanging at an odd angle.

* * *

Elena felt his presence before she woke up. Her eyes flashed open and she saw him shrouded in shadow. A gasp escaped from her mouth as she sat up.

"Dean?" she whispered, rubbing her eyes.

"Hey." He said in a soft voice, mindful of Jo sleeping in the next bed.

Elena slowly slid out of the bed and stood in front of him.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" she asked sleepily.

"I, uh… I wanted to see you." he admitted.

Elena's brow furrowed and alarm bells went off in her head. There was something wrong with him.

"Dean, what's wrong with you?" she asked.

"Nothing… I just… I shouldn't have come." He admitted, turning away.

"Dean." She caught his arm and he stumbled away, inhaling sharply.

Then he winced and his eyes went to her throat.

"Elena…" he mumbled, shaking his head.

"What is wrong with you? I can sense it, Dean. Tell me." she urged him.

"Elena?" Jo's sleepy voice came as she sat up, squinting through the darkness.

"It's okay, Jo." She assured her.

"Dean? What are you doing here?" she asked, reaching out to turn on the lamp.

Dean winced and wrenched his arm out of Elena's grip with more strength that he should have been capable of. That was her next clue that something was wrong with him.

"Please… stop. Just stop talking. Stop…" he groaned, backing away.

Elena pushed forward, pulling his face to look at her.

"Tell me now." She said, worry filling her every being.

He shook his head and suddenly she was shoved against the wall.

"I can't… you smell…" he muttered, burying his face in her neck.

"Dean?" she said, her heart pounding furiously.

Jo suddenly ran forward and tried to peel Dean off of Elena.

"Dean, you're scaring us."

Elena watched with shock as he threw his arm back and Jo flew across the room and hit the wall with a thud. She fell to the ground unconscious with blood trickling down her forehead.

"Dean!" she yelled, pushing him away.

He wasn't looking at her. His eyes were trained on the red liquid on Jo's head.

"Hey, what the hell is going on?" Elena said, fear filling her, not because she was afraid of him, but because she was afraid for him.

Then she realized that this might not even be Dean. Her eyes flickered to her duffle bag and she eyed him carefully. His eyes were still on Jo. She slid away from the wall and then darted towards the bag. Suddenly she was tackled to the ground and Dean was on top of her.

"Get off!" she yelled, turning over and shoving him off of her.

His eyes widened and he suddenly shoved himself away, standing up.

"I'm sorry. I'm so… I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry." He said, panicking.

Elena scrambled towards the bag and pulled out her silver dagger and a flask of holy water. She held it out threateningly.

"Who the hell are you?" she growled, advancing on him.

"I'm Dean… Elena. Something happened." He said, his hands up in surrender.

"I don't believe you!" she darted forward and threw the water on him.

Nothing happened but she didn't hesitate. She threw the flask to the side and attacked him with the knife. He ducked her attack easily but she flew at him again. He caught her arm and drove her into the wall again, holding the knife away from him.

"Stop attacking me." he said through gritted teeth.

"What have you done with Dean?" she demanded, throwing him off.

"I am Dean." He said, trying to get her to understand.

"You're lying!" she cried, launching at him again.

She didn't attack him with as much force as she could have. Because what if she was wrong and this was Dean? She didn't want to kill him. Before she knew it, the knife got tangled in their grips and nicked a small slice in her wrist. Dean immediately froze, not fighting anymore. His eyes dropped down to the cut and he stared at the blood dripping out. Elena suddenly understood.

"Oh no." she breathed.

The case that Dean and Sam were working, girls disappearing without a trace, bodies not being found. It sounded too much like something she was used to. Vampires.

"I'm so… hungry." He growled, slamming her against the wall.

"Dean stop." Elena said, not wanting to hurt him by using too much force on him.

His eyes flickered up to hers.

"You smell… so good." He groaned, slowly losing his mind to the bloodlust.

"Please." She whispered, trying to bring him back to her.

He let out a shout and pushed away from her, turning away.

"Dean!" she said, dropping the knife and putting her hand out to touch his shoulder.

Suddenly he whirled back around and another set of teeth was descended over his normal teeth. The fangs were sharp and threatening.

"Dean no!" she screamed as he launched at her.

His teeth sank into her throat before she could fight back. He took one long drink of her blood before letting out a cry of pain and shoving away from her, clutching at his throat with a pained look. Elena took the chance and grabbed the back of his neck, slamming his head into the wall. Then she yanked him away and delivered one strong blow to his cheek. He fell to the ground unconscious and Elena let out a cry, collapsing on her knees next to him.

Damon and Stefan were reclining on the couches in the living room drinking when she appeared in the room. They smelled the blood before they saw her.

"Elena?" Stefan said, both of them leaping to their feet.

Her face was pale and drawn, a wound was on her neck, and she looked like she was going to throw up and faint at the same time.

"I need your help." She said, looking down at her feet.

Dean was lying there unconscious.

* * *

"Can't keep track of your brother now?" Samuel demanded as they walked into the motel room.

"Well, I didn't think he'd just…" Sam began.

"He's not himself, Sam." his grandfather cut him off. "He's a monster and he's hungry. You gotta be prepared to do the right thing."

They were both interrupted by Sam's phone ringing. He pulled it out and answered it.

"Hello?"

"I don't care how you do it or how long it takes. You get your ass to Mystic Falls. I have Dean." Elena's voice said harshly before she hung up.

* * *

Elena stared in the mirror, her eyes wide and the dark circles underneath them standing out on her pale skin. The wound on her neck was still unhealed but it was no longer bleeding.

"Elena?" Damon's worried voice said from outside the door.

He could still smell the blood.

"I'm fine." She said hoarsely, a tear sliding down her cheek.

"Sweetie, he's awake and asking for you." Caroline said, sounding hesitant and sympathetic.

Elena bit her lip and her head dropped down heavily.

"How is Jo?" she asked hesitantly.

"She's fine, just resting." Damon assured her.

Elena sighed and sank to her knees on the bathroom rug, more tears escaping from her burning eyes.

"Elena?" Caroline asked worredly.

"I'll be out soon." She said, brushing her hair away from her face and choking back her need to cry.

Her hand went up to her neck and lay over the wound, her eyes sliding closed as she let the skin heal up. Then she stood and washed the blood off, washed her face, and pulled her hair up into a ponytail. Once she opened the door, she walked out, nodding at Caroline and Damon before walking down hall and the stairs quietly. Jeremy, Alaric, Bonnie, and Stefan were gathered in the living room. Jo was still asleep on the couch but she was healed of her wounds thanks to Elena. She continued past the room and down into the basement. The door was closed and locked tightly. Elena peered through the bars on the window.

He was sitting on the cot inside the small room with his elbows on his spread knees and his head in his hands. He looked up slowly at her approach and his eyes met hers.

"Elena…" he choked out, his eyes shining. "… I'm so sorry."

She sighed and put her hands on the bars.

"It's not your fault, okay? We'll figure this out." she assured him.

"There's nothing to figure out, Elena. I'm not like Damon and Stefan. I attacked you, I bit you. I can't control myself. You have to…"

"Stop." She snapped.

He cut off and stared at her with wide eyes.

"You are not dying on me, Dean Winchester. I will not allow it. We will fix this." she said definitively, exhausted but still convinced of this.

Upstairs, she heard new voices as the front door opened and closed. Dean glanced up as well.

"I'm sorry about the dungeon. It's… safe." She sighed.

"No, it's necessary. It's a good idea." He nodded.

"That's Elijah up there. He might know something. I'm going to go talk to him. Let us know if you need something, okay?" she asked.

Dean looked her, tears still gathered in his eyes.

"I just… can you please… not come down here again?" he asked hesitantly.

She stared at him with surprise.

"But…"

"I hate you seeing me like this, Elena. And your blood, no matter how bad it tasted, it smells like… like heaven." He said.

She instantly felt bad for making him uncomfortable.

"It tasted bad?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side.

"More like it was burning me." he said.

She nodded and sighed.

"I won't come down again until we fix it." she agreed, turning to walk off.

But she stopped and turned back to him.

"I love you, Dean." She said.

"I love you too." He sighed, sounding broken.

When she got up there, Elijah was standing there with Klaus and Kol.

"Tell me you can help us." She said pleadingly, feeling as broken as Dean sounded.

"I am in contact with a few beings that might know something, as is Klaus." Elijah said.

Elena was interrupted from answering by her phone ringing. She answered it and found that it was Sam. They were pulling into town. She told him to go to the boarding house before she hung up with him.

"Sam is coming her with Samuel, who might know something." She sighed.

Behind her, she heard stirring. Jo was sitting up on the couch.

"What the…" she looked around.

"We're in Mystic Falls, Jo." Elena said, walking to her.

"Why? Wait… what is wrong with Dean?" she asked, suddenly remembering.

"He's… he's a vampire, Jo." She said unwillingly.

"Wait like… these guys?" she asked, gesturing to Stefan and Damon.

"No, the other kind." She said, rubbing her forehead.

"Dammit. The shit we get into, Gilbert." Jo said, sounding devastated but trying to cover it up.

As a hunter, she knew what this meant. Death.

"We're trying to figure it out." Elena said.

The blonde peered up at her.

"What is there to figure out, Elena? Has Dean really not asked you to kill him yet?" she asked.

"He's tried. I haven't given him a chance. No one is killing anyone." Elena snapped and everyone quieted, unwilling to argue with her.

Downstairs, Dean buried his head in his hands and bit his lip hard as the stubborn words of his lover filled him with even more sadness and devastation than he had before.

* * *

As soon as Sam and Samuel walked through the door, Elena flew at them.

"Why the hell didn't you call me?" she demanded, glaring up at Sam.

"Elena… I…" he began.

"I should have been the first person you called as soon as it happened." She spat.

"Dean didn't want me to. He didn't want you to see him…" Sam trailed off.

"He's not dying. You're not killing him. No one is killing him."

"Can we go see him, Elena?" Samuel asked, cutting in.

She stared at them with narrowed eyes before turning to lead the way. They walked into the basement and she stood a little ways away as Sam and Samuel peeked in.

"I told you he'd kill me when he showed up." Dean said, hunched against the wall as he sat on the cot.

"Dean… he's not…" Elena began.

"It doesn't matter. Just come in and do it." he said and she glared at the door even though he couldn't see her.

"Okay... if you insist... or I can just turn you back." Samuel sighed.

"What?" Dean and Sam demanded at the same time as Elena's heart leapt with hope.

Samuel gave Sam an odd look before turning to look into the cell.

"I didn't drive all this way to kill you, Dean… I'm here to save you. But there's something important. Have you fed?"

Elena bit her lip as they remained silent.

"Answer the question, Dean." Samuel said sternly.

"He drank from me." Elena finally admitted.

They both looked at her.

"Dammit!" Samuel growled.

"What?" Elena, Sam, and Dean all asked at once.

"It doesn't work if he feeds. If a vampire feeds on human blood, it's irreversible."

Sam looked panicked and disappointed. She heard Dean let out a sharp breath, obviously thinking that all hope was gone.

"Well it's a good thing I'm not human then." She said.

* * *

They were upstairs with everyone else. Dean was sitting in a chair with Klaus and Elijah hovering behind him at his own request. Jo was sleeping in one of the guest rooms and Bonnie and Jeremy had left to give Dean less of a temptation. Elena was several feet away from him to attempt to keep him from being pained by her presence.

"That's my grandfather's journal." Samuel said, sliding the book across the table to Dean. "Cure's an old Campbell recipe, kind of like the soup. No one's tried it since God knows. What I hear... this stuff is a bad trip."

"Awesome." Dean sighed, back to his normal snarky self.

"Hey… the cure is good. But a lot of this is on you. You drink, you're done. It won't work. I'm talking one drop of human blood…" Samuel began.

"I got it." Dean growled.

"Do you? Because you already fed and you will want to feed again. It's a matter of time."

Dean suddenly slammed the journal shut and glared at his grandfather, his emotions obviously standing on end.

"What else do we need?" Elena asked, causing Samuel to glance up at them.

"Some stuff we got, some we gotta get. Trickiest thing on the list: blood of the fang that turned ya." Samuel said.

"That guy was huge." Sam commented.

"There's nothing in the recipe about easy." Samuel said.

"I can get it." Dean said.

"No." Elena refused.

He turned to look at her.

"We have several vampires here that can come with me to get the blood." She said.

"I'm not going to stay here while all of you go." he argued.

"You're unstable, Dean. And we're not going to deliver you right into your sire's hands. It's probably what he wants. For all we know, he could force you to drink blood." Elena said.

"So you're gonna walk right into the nest?" Dean scoffed.

"Why not?" she shrugged.

"Well, I'm one of them. So all I gotta do is get in there, get the guy alone, and... shoot him with so much dead man's blood that he'll think he's rushing a fraternity." Dean said.

"It's a nest of vampires, Dean. You could get killed before you make it a step towards the big guy. Not happening." Elena said.

"What makes you think that you'll make it out any easier?" he demanded.

"How about we all go?" Damon said.

They turned to face him.

Dean can go in first, see if he can tell why the vampire is gathering up so many vamps. Then we can come busting in and clean us out a nest." He shrugged.

"It's dangerous." Elena said.

"I can handle myself killing a bunch of vamps." Dean said.

She glanced at him.

"I don't like it." she warned.

"Come on, there will be five vampires, an angel-guardian thing, gigantor hunter, vampire hunter, and grandpa hunter with us. What could go wrong?" Damon shrugged, throwing an arm around her shoulders.

* * *

"What the hell's wrong with you, Sam?" he asked blatantly.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, stopping and looking at his grandfather innocently.

"You knew about the cure!" Samuel said, his brow furrowing.

"What? No, I didn't." Sam scoffed.

"But we talked about it months ago." the older man said definitively.

"Not me. Must've been Christian or something." Sam shrugged.

"Huh. That's strange, cause if you had known, it'd be almost like you let him get turned. Get a man on the inside? Help us find that alpha vamp we've been looking for?"

An uncomfortable pause filled the room as Sam looked at him incredulously.

"Are you serious? You think I'd do something like that, risk my own brother?" Sam demanded.

There was another lengthy pause.

"What's wrong with you?" Samuel stared at Sam at his accusing tone. "Look, I'm just relieved we can fix him."

They were silent for a moment before Samuel glanced back at the house.

"What's going on with those three foreign vamps?" he asked.

"They're the Original vampires. Oldies and supposed to be the originators of this species." Sam explained.

Samuel glanced back again.

"Like alphas? But a family of them?" he asked, interested.

Sam glanced over at him.

"Yeah." He said.

Samuel nodded, a calculating look in his eyes. **(A/N: yes he's planning something to do with the Original vamps, foreshadowing!)**

* * *

As soon as they landed in the parking lot of the run-down warehouse, They all stepped away from Elena. Dean glanced over at her and saw her looking anywhere but at him.

"You should all stay out here until I can clear the way for you." Dean said

Instead of arguing with him as he expected her to do, Elena nodded slowly. They all hid behind a dumpster as Dean waited by the door with a rope tied around the handle. Finally two vampire came walking out and talking. He stopped the door from closing and slid inside, looking around. He managed to sneak through a hallway for a few minutes before his way was suddenly blocked by a person. He looked up to see a male vampire standing there.

"S'up?" the other vampire said.

"Hey. I'm..." Dean began, trying to be relaxed.

"The guy Boris turned outside the bar, right? Said to look out for you." the man said.

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Well." he smiled. "Glad you made it, man!"

He raised his hand for a fist bump and, after a second, Dean complied.

"Follow me." he led Dean through the hallways and into a cold room.

"So you must be starving."

"Uh..."

The vampire walked to a fridge full of blood bags. He slid the door open and pulled a bag out. Dean grimaced slightly before the other male turned to him, holding the bag out.

"Here ya go." he said.

Dean paused, searching for what to say to get out of it.

"I'm okay."

The other vampire looked at him oddly and Dean smiled easily.

"I killed so many people on the way over here, so..." he shrugged.

"Yeah, uh, about that... company line is we… we don't just kill people anymore... but you gotta tell me what that's like." the man said, grinning.

"Yeah. Yeah, first chance I get, I'll..." a smirk spreaded across Dean's face. "I'll show you myself."

"Sweet." He said, ripping the stopper off of the bag and taking a swig.

Dean could smell the blood and his throat suddenly felt like it ws made of sandpaper. But he forced himself to turn away. He followed Robert down a flight of stairs through a crowd of more vampires.

"Don't worry about them. They're jealous. The recruiters get to bang all the chicks. That's you now, bro." the man, Robert apparently, said.

"Recruiters?" Dean questioned.

"Yeah. Big man'll explain." Robert said as they entered the main room.

The young woman they were looking for originally, Kristin, was sitting at a desk typing on a laptop. The vampire who turned him, Boris, was leaning over.

"Be with you in a minute." He said, raising a finger without looking at them.

"Your skin is the black velvet of the night." He dictating to Kristin, who looked pale and drawn. "Nice. Stupid bitch'll eat that up, she'll be dying to meet."

Boris leaned in closer and took a long sniff of Kristin's hair and she recoiled. Dean looked around to see several female vampires locked in a cage sucking down blood from bags.

"Go get yourself some blood, sweetheart. Then march that little ass right back here, okay?"

Kristin stood from the chair and locked eyes with Dean before exiting the room.

"Thank goodness. Thought the hunter chopped your pretty head." Boris said as he walked to Dean, a thrilled look on his face.

"Naw. I got away. Sorry, what's a hunter?" Dean asked, playing dumb.

"You'll see if he finds us. You'll see him inside out." Boris laughed manically and Dean fought back a scowl. "You eaten?"

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Good. You'll need your strength." He said, walking around Dean.

"For?" Dean questioned.

"Robert didn't tell you?" he snorted before getting in Dean's face. "How old do I look?"

Dean paused, disgusted by this vampire.

"Thirty-three?" He guessed.

"You're off... by about... six centuries? And these are the best days in the last six hundred years to be a vampire." he laughed as he began circling him again. "Dracula? Anne Rice? Please. These stupid little brats are so horny they've reinvented us as Prince Charming with a Volvo. They... want a promise ring with fangs, so I give it to 'em."

One of the vampire girls snarled as he reached through the bars and grabbed her hair.

"You… you go out and you get them, and you bring 'em home to me." he said, smirking.

He released the girl and she fell back with a cry.

"So what's with the cages?" Dean asked, glancing at them.

"Oh, that's just, y'know... till they're compliant. Eventually these girls will go out, and they'll fetch me boys like you, and around and around we go..." Boris explained.

"Gotta say, I'm impressed. This whole system, it's... it's all you?" Dean said, doing his best to sound casual.

"No, no, no, no...I just...implement, y'know? Make sure you all fall in line." The bushy-haired vampire pointed to the ceiling.

"It's his... our father's..." he said with reference, pointing up at the stained glass decoration on the ceiling.

"Your father's?" Dean said, the language somewhat familiar.

"Aren't you the curious one?" Boris said, tilting his head to the side.

"Oh, you don't know the half of it." Dean nodded.

"In due time. You... you want the private tour, don't you?" Boris questioned, leaning in even closer and violating all of Dean's personal space rules.

"Thought you'd never ask." He said, trying not to vomit.

Boris stepped away and made a beckoning motion with his finger. When he turned his back on Dean, he pulled out the needle. As he stepped towards Boris, he uncapped the needle. When he raised it, ready to plunge it, one drop leaked out onto the floor. Boris heard it and quickly turned as he tried to stab it into him. He grabbed Dean's arm and moved behind him, twisting it behind his back. With his free hand, he grabbed Dean into a chokehold.

"You playing games with me, boy?" He growled.

He squeezed Dean's arm until he was forced to let go of the syringe. Then he began laughing in triumph. But then, suddenly, interrupting his laughter, he glanced up at the ceiling. Whispers began filling the room and Dean listened with confusion as Boris let him go. The caged girls began limply falling to the floor. After a moment, Dean's eyes rolled back into his head and a series of images flashed through his mind.

* * *

Elena glanced up at the building as she heard a low humming noise. Something was wrong. It reminded her of when the angels would try to communicate in their real forms. She didn't say anything, just running up to the building. Everyone followed her after initially being shocked at her quick movement. The door threw open by itself and Elena ran through, her mind buzzing with anger as she wanted to personally behead the vampire that dared to touch her Dean. She concentrated on Dean, running through the hallways. They heard a door open and a vamp stepped out, noticing them and raising the alarm.

"Take care of them! I'll find Dean!" she yelled over her shoulder.

Dean blinked quickly as he came out of the onslaught of alarming images. He rolled over onto his back, groaning as his mind pounded with pain and his vision was blurry. He looked around to see that Boris was up and releasing the female vampires from their cages. He rose quickly, backing away. One of the vampire guards rushed down the stairs to attack him and he quickly injected him with the dead man's blood.

"Go get him!" Boris shouted to the rest of the vamps.

Another guard ran towards but, before he could reach him, a body dropped down from the upper catwalk in front of Dean and decaptitated him in one swipe of her machete. Elena backed towards Dean, holding her machete out. Dean pulled his out as well, readying himself. A crowd of more vampires ran into the large room. Elena wondered just how many of them were in this nest. She turned towards Dean quickly and leaned up, pressing her lips to his roughly, not caring if it awoke the bloodlust in him. In this case, that would be a good thing. He growled and pulled her against him, deepening the kiss. Elena broke his grip and looked up at him.

"I love you. No matter what." She said.

"I love you." he agreed, nodding.

She sighed and turned towards the vampires that were advancing on them.

"Happy hunting." She said.

"You too." Dean replied.

* * *

For the Mystic Falls vampires, they had a different way of beheading these vampires so they were without machetes. Sam and Samuel were hacking through them, though. When they finally made it to the central room, they were shocked to see Elena and Dean standing in the middle of a group of vampires. Instead of the rough fighting that Sam and Samuel had taken part in or the brutal fighting that the vampires did, they looked almost like they were doing a dance around each other. It made the rest freeze in their tracks, taken aback by the way they moved around each other gracefully. If there wasn't blood splattering everywhere, they almost looked like they were really doing a choreographed routine. Elena would duck as Dean swung around to decaptiate a vampire standing behind her without a warning.

He would slide to the side slightly as she darted around him to kill a vamp that was sneaking up on him. It was one of the most beautiful and terrifying thing that they'd seen. Sam was the only one who wasn't surprised, having seen it before.

"Wow, they really work well together." Caroline said.

"Yeah." A few others agreed.

Finally, when they were surrounded with the headless bodies off the vampires, they turned in sync to see the large man step out of the shadows.

"You've stopped nothing, you know that?" Boris' voice came from the corner. "This is much bigger than you and me."

Elena, without a word, disappeared and reappeared behind him.

"That may well be, but at least you won't be around to see it." she said, whirling him around and putting her hand on his forehead.

He yelled as the bright light filled his eyes but she didn't do enough to kill him, instead shoving him backwards for Dean to get his revenge. And get it he did, when his machete cut clean through Boris' neck.

* * *

**The Only One – Evanescence (through the end)**

They all watched as Samuel squirted a syringe of Boris' blood into a jar that held the cure potion. Dean was standing far away from them, holding his stomach with a sick look on his face as if he could sense that this was going to be unpleasant. Elena and Dean didn't even bother to wash off the blood that was covering them, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible. Jo was in the living room as well as the Salvatores, Klaus, Kol, Elijah, Bonnie and Jeremy.

"If this works, you know it's not gonna be a kiddy ride, you know that." Samuel warned Dean.

"That's great. Light her up." Dean growled.

"So what'd you see in there?" Sam said.

Samuel and Elena turned to face him, surprised at the slight hint of eagerness in his voice.

"What?" Dean demanded.

"In the nest… what'd you see?" he repeated.

"Sam, I can't hear you… your blood is so frickin' loud, okay? Just… just back off." the older brother snapped, watching as Samuel poured the potion into a coffee cup. "All right, gimme the damn cure."

Dean took it and sniffed it before recoiling. His eyes met Elena's and she nodded slowly. With a grim smile, he lifted the mug.

"L'chaim." He said before chugging the potion down messily, trying to keep it down.

Nothing happened and he spit a little bit back out.

"I don't think it…"

Suddenly he spun around and retched, projectile vomiting blood into the nearest wastebasket. Damon complained a little before Caroline shut him up. Sam and Samuel remained in place but Elena ran to him and collapsed to her knees next to him, rubbing his back soothingly as he choked out the blood.

"Is it working?" Sam questioned.

"Either that or he's dying." Samuel said, drawing his machete just in case.

Dean's hand shot out and gripped Elena's as he struggled to breath. Suddenly his head snapped back and he clutched his stomach, moaning in agony. His fangs descended and his eyes were bloodshot. Elena felt an unpleasant feeling in her head, as if she was unwillingly being sucked into something. That's when she began to see images. It took her a moment to realize that she was seeing Dean's memories of being a vampire in reverse. Some of it was stuff she saw and some of it she didn't. She winced as the scene at the motel played out. Dean was in too much pain to react to any of it. She had no idea why she was seeing this. Maybe Dean wanted her to see this or maybe it was part of their soulmate bond or her abilities at archangel status that she'd not fully experimented with.

Then she saw an alleyway with Boris hovering over Dean as he punched him. Out of the corner of Dean's eye, they both saw Sam standing there. He didn't move, watching as Boris bit his wrist and put it in Dean's mouth. A corner of Sam's mouth lifted in a smirk and Dean's vision froze on that for a moment before it ended. Dean's eyes snapped shut and he let go of Elena falling backwards unconscious. She leaned over him and put her hands on his face, comprehending what she just saw.

"Dean?" she said with uncertainty.

Suddenly his eyes popped open and they were clear. His eyes searched her face and she knew that he'd willingly pulled her into his mind at the question that was prevalent. Had she seen it too? She nodded slowly as Sam and Samuel walked over, helping Dean up along with Elena. Sam patted him on the chest but they both eyed him strangely.

"Come on." she murmured softly. "Let's get cleaned up."

Sam and Samuel let go of him as she steered him out of the room. They stopped and Dean glanced over at the Mystic Falls people.

"Thank you, for helping." He said.

They all nodded, looking pleased at his expression of gratitude.

Elena helped him upstairs and into the bathroom. He leaned against the counter weakly as she shut the door. When she turned to him, he was staring at her with wide, emotional eyes.

"Elena…" he choked out.

"Shh." She whispered, putting her finger on his lips.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered brokenly around the finger.

She leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

"It's not your fault, you hear me? I don't blame you for a thing. I still love you and I'm not even a little bit scared of you." she assured him.

"But you couldn't even look at me." he sighed.

"Because I was so ashamed of myself. I should have stayed with you. I should have been here to prevent all of this." she said regretfully.

He reached out and put his hands on her cheeks.

"If I can't blame myself, you can't blame yourself either." He mumbled.

Elena sighed and nodded.

"Deal." She agreed.

Then she turned around and put the shower on hot water. They stripped their clothes off, neither of them even caring about sex at that point. They just wanted to wash the blood off and hold each other. And that's exactly what they did.

"He's not Sam, Elena." Dean said.

She squeezed her eyes shut and a tear slid out of them.

"I know." She murmured.

* * *

When they left the bathroom, Elena magicking clothes onto their bodies, Sam and Samuel were the only ones in the living room along with Jo. Stefan and Damon were probably off giving them privacy.

"Hi. So, what'd you see?" Sam asked instantly.

"What?" Dean said, confused.

"In the nest. What'd you see?" the younger brother sighed.

Dean paused, staring at him.

"Uhm... well, I'm still trying to work through it, but, uh... I'm pretty sure they're not figuring anything out on their own. They're getting their orders from the top... where to go next, everything." He explained.

"Top, as in..." Samuel trailed off.

"Their alpha." Dean said, his eyes flashign to the older hunter. "At least, that's what I think it is. They've got some sort of psychic thing happening. He sends 'em, uh... I don't know… messages?

"Saying what?" Sam asked.

"Honestly? Recruitment drive." Dean said as Elena hung up the phone. "Their alpha's building an army."

"Well, that's comforting." Samuel sighed.

"That's not the worst." Dean offered.

"Then what is?" Sam scoffed.

Dean paused, glancing at Elena.

"We don't scare them anymore."

* * *

"Hey, so… I'm sorry about all of this. If I had been there sooner…" Sam said as they walked to the Impala.

Dean and Elena exchanged a wary glance.

"Yeah. I know, you always got my back. No matter what happens, I can always count on you, right, Sammy?" Dean nodded, glancing at his brother.

Sam paused slightly, staring at him.

"Yeah. Of course, Dean." He nodded, climbing into the car.

Elena and Dean looked at each other, neither of them believing a word.

* * *

"I don't understand, Father, why Gabriel is not guiding the girl anymore." Michael said, staring at his father who was still in the prophet's form with a white suit on.

"Because there are more important things for Gabriel to be doing." God answered simply.

"She is stubborn. I can see so much of my brother in her, it's amazing she has not followed in his footsteps and become a trickster." The archangel said, almost sounding grumpy.

"I also want her to challenge you, Michael, as she challenges so many others. You will find this to be the hardest job you've ever done. Trust me." God said.

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Okay so your reviews got a little confusing in the two versions of chapter eight so I'm just saying thank you to everyone who reviewed both versions!**

**And anyone who is worried about having offended me or hurt my feelings, stop worrying. I promise you did not. I went back and read the chapter and realized that it was not my best. You were right and you actually helped me. I want you to be honest like that because I want my writing to be good for both me and you. So keep up the honesty. As long as you're nice about it and unnecessarily rude, I welcome the criticism.**

**A few things:  
**

**1. If I don't answer a question you ask in your review, it's not because I'm ignoring it. I either don't want to reveal a spoiler that is important to the story or I don't know the answer yet. I promise I do not ignore your reviews. I love them so keep them coming.**

**2. Also, in case you haven't done the math, Elena is twenty now. I know that I didn't show her birthday but she is twenty.**

**3. I am so so sorry that it took me this long to update. I just got home for spring break so I've been spending a lot of time with my family. And I also had a hard time writing this chapter for some reason.**

**4. I just wanted to apologize for shamelessly stealing lines from Supernatural for this entire series. I don't know if you like that or hate it but I just realized that it might not be the best thing ever. So I apologize.**

**5. Also, I suffered writing this chapter because I had to go to the dentist today and he had a drill in my mouth and my mind kept flashing to one of the scenes (you'll know which one) so every time he did anything I would flinch a little.**

* * *

"_We haven't done this in a while." Dean sighed._

_Elena looked up at him and nodded._

"_I just knew we needed to talk… without being heard." She sighed._

_They were sitting on a bed across from each other in a dimly lit room. Their hands were clasped together and they were looking at each other. Elena was in his dream because they were in a motel on a job and Sam was there with them._

"_And Elijah is sure about what he heard?" Dean asked._

"_He said that he heard Samuel talking to Sam before we went to the nest. Sam knew about the cure, Dean." Elena sighed._

_Dean sighed and let his head drop._

"_Well then we can't wait any longer. We have to figure this out and we have to do it now." He said._

"_Let's get Bobby on it, see if he can find anything at all to help us. I know that we've asked him before but before Sam wasn't putting your life in danger. It's more… desperate now." Elena said softly, reaching up to stroke his cheek._

"_What if it is Lucifer in him? What are we going to do?" Dean questioned._

"_We'll take care of it… somehow. We'll get through this, Dean. I know we will."_

_He nodded and leaned forward, putting his forehead on her shoulder._

"_Are we going to talk about how you had no idea that I was in danger from the vamp? How your danger radar was off?" he said softly._

_Elena sighed, wishing he hadn't noticed that. _

"_Sam first, Dean. Then we can worry about what's wrong with me. It won't happen again." She said._

* * *

"I'm Ashley Frank, and I will..."

The newscaster was cut off when the man holding the remote switched the television to a random comedy show. A waitress named Jane emerged from the kitchen and walked to the back hallway while speaking on her cell phone.

"He said he'd call, but of course he never did. But… I don't know. I just… we had such a good time. I-I should call him, right? Do you think? I mean, should I call him? I don't know." She turned to see her manager staring down at her. "Oh. Uh, Olivia, just hold on a sec."

She smiled nervously at him and nodded at his motion for her to get back to work.

"I just need the truth. That's all." Jane sighed. "I really gotta go, 'kay? Call you later."

She slid past the manager and to the kitchen to pick up a customer's order.

"I pity you." the cook said.

"I'm sorry?" Jane questioned, stopping in place.

"You're sad and pathetic, and I pity you… only reason I'm giving you a head's up. Stay away from the clam chowder. I flavored it with my own... seasoning." He said.

She stared at him, shocked, before going to deliver the order.

"Hey, Jane. You know that new girl, Misty? Way hotter than you." the manager said as she passed.

"Excuse me?" Jane said, taken aback at his words.

"Basically, she's an eight, and you're a... a three." He decided, turning to walk off.

Jane was disconcerted as she continued on her duties.

"Can I get you anything else, ma'am?" she asked an elderly woman.

"No, thank you. I ran over a homeless man once, and I never even stopped to see if he was alive." She said, her eyes wide as if she couldn't believe what she was saying.

As she moved to through the restaurant, more people addressed her with startling confessions.

"I hate mommy. I want to burn her in her sleep." A little girl said.

"I don't know what it is, but you just give me the creeps. Like I get physically nauseous." A male waiter said.

"You're pathetic."

"Loser."

"Desperate."

She felt tears welling up in her throat as she walked to a back room. She pulled a gun out of a drawer. Then Jane walked back out into the restaurant and towards the back door.

"Stupid. Mousy."

"You're a desperate, pathetic loser."

"You're gonna die alone."

She stumbled into the alley and dialed her sister's number.

"Hey, can you come get me?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"You sound awful. Have you been drinking?" Olivia questioned suspiciously.

"I think I'm going crazy. I'm freaking out." Jane whimpered.

"Of course you are. 'Cause you are a freak. You're certifiable. Every time the phone rings, my stomach drops. Jane with another crisis. You're a walking disaster."

Jane wasn't even shocked anymore but her heart was breaking. She slowly pulled the gun out of her apron.

"The whole family's just waiting for your next big breakdown, Jane. We're like hostages. Why don't you just go ahead and kill yourself already?" Olivia snapped.

Jane placed the gun underneath her chin and blood splattered the restaurant sign as a gunshot rang out.

* * *

"I know what I saw, Bobby." Dean said into the phone.

They walking through a grassy area while Sam was in line to get food for them from a street vendor. Elena was leaning into Dean to hear Bobby's reply.

"We tested him. Salt, silver… everything." The older hunter replied.

"He threw me to that vamp. I'm telling you, it's not my brother." Dean sighed.

"Well, then he's something we ain't ever seen before." Bobby informed them.

"Yeah, or it's freakin' Lucifer." Dean said.

"Did you call Cas?"

"Course I called Cas." The older Winchester brother snapped.

"We both did several times. He's not answering." Elena said, glancing up at Sam to see that his back was turned.

"Screw him. We can't wait anymore." Dean said.

"Look, I get it. You're rattled. You're right to be. But let's be professional…" Bobby began.

"Professional?" Dean interrupted him in an unbelieving tone. "He watched me get turned!"

Elena put her hand on his shoulder comfortingly, not wanting him to get too loud so that Sam wouldn't hear.

"What you saw... are you sure that's what you saw?" Bobby questioned.

"Damn it, Bobby, yes. I know." Dean said, frustrated with the older man second guessing him.

"Well, y'ou know' ain't the same as proof."

"I saw it too, Bobby. Somehow, I was in his head." Elena explained.

"Guys we're talking about…" Bobby said.

"… we're talking about doing something about this, and fast. It's not just the vamp, okay? He has been different from the jump." Dean stressed.

There was a moment of silence and Elena and Dean exchanged a look, afraid that Bobby would continue to be stubborn and refuse to see that there was something wrong with Sam.

"All right. I'm with you." he finally said, giving in.

"Are you?" Dean questioned to be certain.

"Yeah. I'll hit the books, hard. Just don't shoot him yet, all right? Watch him. We need facts. Cause if it ain't Sam... we don't know what it is. And if we're gonna put him down, we need to know how." Bobby warned him.

"I don't even want to ride in the same car with him, much less work a damn case." Dean grumbled, watching as Sam turned towards them with their lunches in one hand and a newspaper in the other.

"Get in the car. He's your case." Bobby growled before hanging up.

Sam walked up to them and Elena helped him pass out the food, acting as naturally as she could.

"I was just calling Jo and Ellen, making sure that Jo was all right." Dean said when Sam looked at the phone questioningly.

"Oh, how is she?" Sam asked.

Dean simply stared at him.

"Good, yeah she's good." Elena cut in, putting her hand on Dean's shoulder to snap him out of it.

"You okay?" Sam questioned, staring at Dean intensly.

"Yeah. I'm fine. How are you?" Dean asked in a stilted manner.

Elena almost rolled her eyes. When it came to people he didn't know, Dean was the best actor in the world. When it came to his brother, he couldn't lie for crap.

"Me? Great." Sam said, somehow not noticing. "Here, look. Check this out. Think it might be something."

He handed Elena the newspaper and they both peered down at it. It was an article about a woman who committed suicide, saying that it wasn't the first one to happen.

"Four people, out of nowhere, all in the last couple of weeks. What do you say?" Sam asked, looking at them.

"Yeah. Sounds like a plan." Dean nodded, taking the newspaper and folding it up.

"Let's go." Sam nodded.

* * *

They were in the house of the most recent victim that she shared with her sister, Olivia, who was walking around packing things up. Dean was taking a look around the house as Elena and Sam talked to the sister.

"I don't understand. Why would federal investigators be interested in a suicide?" Olivia questioned, looking between them nervously.

"Well, um... it's a new, more caring administration." Sam said, sounding as sarcastic as he could but the woman didn't seem to notice.

"Well, I already told the cops. Jane was having a really bad day, so I-I did what any sister would do." Olivia reached up and played with a lock of her hand.

When she heard footsteps, Elena turned to see Dean walk in and stand behind where she was sitting. Olivia glanced up at him before looking back at Sam.

"I... tried to cheer her up, you know? Told her to hang in there." she informed them.

Elena nodded at her but Sam spoke up, his voice a little bit harsh.

"You know what a tell is?" he asked.

"Excuse me?" the woman said, looking up at him with surprise.

"It's a poker term... for when you're bluffing. Like what you just did with your hair." Sam pointed out.

Elena glanced at him with an uncertain look.

"What are you trying to say?" Olivia demanded.

"You're lying." Sam said simply.

Dean and Elena were both shocked at Sam's declaration.

"What?!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Miss Peterson…" Elena began, trying to bring things down a notch.

"Tell us what you did to your sister." Sam said, almost looking thrilled as hes spoke slowly.

Elena sighed and looked down at her hands before looking back up to see Olivia looking between her and Dean for reassurance. Dean raised his eyebrows as Elena simply stared at her .

"Okay. You're right." she whimpered, sounding devastated. "I was lying. I wanted to tell her, 'I love you. I'm here for you'. Oh, but what came out was... 'you're a burden. Just kill yourself'. Who says that?! I-I just couldn't stop!"

Olivia let out a cry of sadness as they all stared at her, Dean and Elena with surprise and Sam with triumph.

* * *

"See anything in the house?" Sam asked Dean as they walked out of the house.

"No hex bags, no sulfur, no EMF. You?" Dean replied.

"A tuba and an issue of Crochet Today. So, what, already kinda suicidal?" Sam suggested.

"Right, and then big sis's Taxicab Confession sends her over the edge. Question is, what made big sis open her big, fat mouth in the first place?" Dean wondered.

"Yeah, that is the question." Sam said.

Elena climbed in the back as they climbed in the front to head to the hotel and research.

* * *

"Are organic fruits and veggies worth the high cost?" the woman on the news said in the background in the dentist office.

"Thanks. Uh, can you grab some gauze, please?" the dentist, Paul, said to his hygenist.

She nodded and walked out of the room.

"Should've had you prescribe me a Valium." His patient and friend said nervously.

"Just relax." Paul said, switching on the light.

"What is the truth?" the female newscaster said.

"It'll be fine." The dentist assured him.

"I'm Ashley Frank." The woman said on television.

"I got to be honest, Paul… I don't really want to be here." The patient sighed.

"You and most people. But you know what? I don't take it personally. Okay, open up."

He quickly injected a needle of numbing medicine into his gums.

"You and Donna should come over for supper. How long has it been?" Paul asked, pulling the needle out. "There. Worst part's over."

"I'm not really into Donna anymore. She's old." The other man said.

The dentist stared at him, surprised.

"Your wife looks great for her age." Paul said, surprised.

"Her saggy skin makes me want to hurl. I have urges, you know."

"Okay." He said with uncertainty.

"Remember that camping trip I missed 'cause I was sick? Well, I wasn't. I was just afraid to be around Melissa." The patient admitted without remorse.

"My daughter Melissa?" Paul questioned, his eyebrows knitting together with confusion.

"But then... she spent the night for Jill's slumber party. Oh... it just seemed so easy, you know?" the patient sighed with a slight smile.

"What are you saying?" the dentist demanded.

"It's not so much I couldn't control myself. I just knew I wouldn't get caught. And I didn't get caught." He shrugged, sounding proud of himself.

Paul suddenly seized him by the throat, causing him to gasp for air. Then he shoved the drill into his mouth and blood began to spurt everywhere. The hygenist walked in and began screaming as loud as she could.

* * *

"Hey. You got anything?" Dean questioned.

Elena looked over from where she was sitting at the desk. Sam was at the police station trying to get more information on the victims. They were both in casual clothing, not wanting to remain in their FBI-like attire any longer than they had to. Dean was wearing her favorite jeans of his that were slightly torn in a few places and fit him perfectly. But she was fighting to concentrate on something other than how fantastic they made his ass look.

"I've been up all night lookin'. Nothing fits." Bobby said over the speakerphone.

"Awesome." Dean sighed.

"You got anything else to go on?" the older hunter questioned.

:Yeah, my skin crawls being in the same room with him. Why don't you look that up?" Dean snapped.

"I'm working on it." Bobby said.

"He doesn't sleep very much, that I've noticed." Elena piped up.

"Thank you." the man said appreciatively.

"I don't know how much longer I can do this, Bobby. You got to figure out what the hell he is and fast." Dean urged him.

"I'm trying. But, Dean, there's a worst-case scenario." He said in a warning tone.

"What, Satan's my co-pilot? Yeah, I know." Dean scoffed.

'Well, that'd be the other worst case." Bobby said, sounding hesitant.

"Well, then what?" the younger hunter asked.

"Maybe it's just Sam." he suggested.

Dean stared at the wall for a moment before shaking his head.

"I gotta go." he said.

"Dean…" Bobby began.

"You got a day, Bobby, and then we're handling this." Dean said, standing up.

He hung up and pulled a beer out of the fridge. Elena remained silent even though she really wanted to berate him and tell him that he could have handled it better. A rattling of the doorknob interrupted her and she fell silent.

"There was another one." Sam said, entering the room with his suit on.

"Yeah? What?" Dean asked, sitting on the bed.

"Dentist drilled a guy to death." Sam said, handing him a file.

"You mean the... non-sexy kind of drilling, right?" Dean asked and both Elena and Sam rolled their eyes.

"50 bucks says he's mixed up in all the crazy." Sam continued, sounding a bit eager.

"You think?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. Let's go talk to him." the younger brother nodded.

"Okay. Uh... why don't you two go ahead? I'll catch up. I'm gonna do a little research." Dean nodded.

It was research on Sam but they both agreed that he probably shouldn't be alone anymore. Sam stared at Dean with a disbelieving look as if he couldn't understand that Dean was actually volunteering to do research.

"You sure?" he asked.

"Yeah. We got to know what we're up against, right?" Dean shrugged.

"Yeah. Yeah, good idea." Sam nodded, turning to walk out of the room.

Elena glanced back at Dean and smiled at him before walking out of the room as well.

* * *

"Thanks a lot." Elena said, smiling sympathetically at the shocked dental hygenist.

"Anything from the dentist?" she asked Sam as he walked out of the police station and onto the street where she was waiting.

He was holding his phone up and she knew that Dean was on the other line.

"Not exactly. He hung himself in his cell before I could get to him." Sam said, looking around.

"Yikes." She said, grimacing as they walked to the car. "But he was definitely involved. Just got the scoop from his assistant."

"Yeah?" Dean asked from the phone where Sam was holding it on speaker.

"Yeah. Let's say the stuff that his patient was confessing to… I'd have murdered him, too. Anyone would have." Elena said, wincing at the words that the hygenist said.

"So, root canal and Russian roulette… both of 'em, it's like they were cursed, right? I mean, people are just compelled to puke the truth all over 'em?" Dean questioned.

"Oh, getting hit with the ugly truth, you go postal? I'd call that a curse." Sam nodded.

"Do me a favor…" he said, turning to Elena. "I'm going to the morgue to check out the body. Why don't you two go to the dentist office to see what you can find?" Sam asked.

"No problem." Dean said.

"I'll see you there in a few minutes." Elena said.

They weren't far from the the dentist office so she decided to walk and Sam took the car. As she walked down the street, she looked around casually.

"Hello sweetie." A voice said and she jumped slightly before looking over with wide eyes.

"Ruby." She snapped.

"The one and only. I'm here to give you a message then I'm leaving so don't go all postal on me." the demon said.

Elena was tempted to throw an insult at her but she refrained.

"Fine. What is it?" she sighed.

"Hmm… I didn't think that would really work. Anyways, this is from your friendly guardian angel." Ruby said.

"Gabriel?" she questioned, shocked.

"Yep." The other female nodded as they walked.

"Why the hell are you in contact with Gabriel?" Elena demanded.

Ruby sighed and shook her head.

"How you and those boys managed to stop the apocalypse is beyond me." she said, stopping and facing Elena, who was ready to let loose on the demon.

"It's not mine, it's not me." Ruby said simply.

"What?" Elena asked, confused.

"That's his message. It's not mine, it's not me."

"Okay but why are you in contact with Gabriel. How are you in contact with Gabriel?" she questioned.

"Sorry, time is up. See you next time." Ruby said before disappearing.

Elena looked around and then let out a frustrated noise before turning to walk towards the office.

* * *

The back door to the office was left open, probably by Dean to give her easy access. Most of the building's lights were shut down. She walked through the hallways until she found a door with yellow tape crisscrossed over it. After ducking underneath it, she saw the blood-covered dentist's chair. Rustling came from the room connected to it. She walked to the doorway and was suddenly met with the barrell of a handgun.

"Dean!" Elena exclaimed, ducking.

"Fuck! I'm sorry!" he said, lowering it immediately and staring at her apologetically.

"It's okay." She breathed, running her fingers through her hair as she walked forward.

She placed her hands on either of his cheeks and looked up at him.

"You are wound so tight and you are so paranoid that you're going to end up shooting someone that you don't mean to shoot. You need to relax a little." Elena sighed, recognizing the exhaustion in his voice.

"I just wish that we were back in Mystic Falls sometimes. That everything was uncomplicated and that we could be sitting at home watching television or something." He admitted.

"I know. I do too, sometimes." She said, leaning up to press a kiss to his lips.

When she drew away, she looked around.

"I found something." He said, pointing at the calendar.

"The dentist had an appointment at Harry's House of Horns. Jane had an appointment there too. It's the only place that I've found that they have in common." he said.

* * *

"Jane and Dr. Conley. I heard. Awful. What do I have to do with it?" the owner of the store questioned, looking between Dean and Elena.

"Honestly? You're the only thing they have in common. Did they say anything to you before they, uh...?" Dean said.

"Sorry. Not really." Harry said, shaking his head.

"Right. We were just fishing. Thanks." Elena sighed as they turned to walk out.

"Hey, by the way, how bout my horn?" they glanced back at him at his question.

"Sorry?" Dean said, furrowing his brow.

"Stolen horn?" Harry said as if it was obvious.

"Right. Yeah. We're… we're working on it." he nodded, no clue what the guy was talking about.

Dean turned to leave as Elena stared at the owner, who looked like he had something more to say.

"Well, I hope so. Thing's one-in-a-billion." He called.

"Dean wait…" Elena said, catching his arm. "What makes it one-in-a-billion again?"

"It's a museum piece. And near as anyone can tell, about a thousand years old." Harry said, pulling out a photo album.

They walked up to see him flip to a page and show them a photo of the instrument.

"Where's it from?" Dean asked.

"No one knows." Harry shrugged.

"When did it get stolen?" Elena said, glancing up at him.

"About... two weeks ago…" Harry said.

Then he thought about it for a moment.

"Same day Jane died." He remembered.

* * *

"Do you really think that's what it is?" Elena said, looking over Dean's shoulder at the computer screen.

Her arms were loosely draped around his neck and her chin was on his shoulder.

"It sounds about right. Gabriel's Horn of Truth. It's a good thing we got a direct link to the source." He said, glancing over at her.

"He might not answer. How about you pray to Cas? We'll see who answers first." Elena said, standing up.

Dean turned to her with a look.

"If Cas hasn't been answering our prayers for the past two weeks, why would he answer them now?" he questioned.

"Just try, please. It can't hurt." She sighed.

Dean nodded unwillingly, sipping on a glass of whiskey.

"Gabriel? We might have your horn down here. It'd be helpful if you could pop over here and tell us for sure." She called, looking around.

"Castiel? Hello? Possible loose nuke down here, angelic weapon. Kinda your department. You hear that, Cas?" Dean said.

"Hello, Dean, Elena." Castiel said solemnly, acting as though they hadn't been calling him nonstop for the past few weeks.

"Are you kidding me?" Elena demanded.

"We have been on red alert about Sam, and you come for some stupid horn?!" Dean continued her exclamation, walking forward as he growled out his words.

"You asked me to be here, and I came." Cas said with a lost expression, leaning against the cabinets in the kitchenette.

"I've been asking you to be here for days, you dick!" Dean yelled.

Castiel was abashed, squinting at him slightly.

"I didn't come about Sam because I have nothing to offer about Sam." the angel admitted and Dean and Elena stared at him, side by side.

Elena's arms were crossed over her chest and Dean was holding his empty glass.

"Well, that's great, because for all we know, he's just gift wrap for Lucifer." Dean said, shaking his head.

"No, he's... he's not Lucifer." Cas said, grabbing the bottle of whiskey and walking up to Dean.

"And how do you know that?" Elena asked, watching as he refilled Dean's glass.

"If Lucifer escaped the cage, we'd feel it." he said, glancing over at her.

Both Elena and Dean stared at him, shocked to see him doing something so natural and… human… as simply filling Dean's glass of whiskey when he probably could have snapped his fingers and had it be full.

"What is wrong with him?" Dean asked, his voice full of emotion.

"I don't know, Dean. I'm sorry." Castiel said, his voice suddenly hardened a little as he realized that he was falling back into old habits and acting very comfortable around the two people in front of him that were looking at him with trust.

"What happened to you, Cas? You used to be human, or at least like one." Dean said, staring at him with a suspicious and hurt look.

Cas' eyes dropped slightly.

"I'm at war. Certain... regrettable things are now required of me." he sighed, turning away.

Elena wanted to call out, tell him to let them help him, but Dean spoke before she could.

"And Gabriel's Horn of Truth? That's a real thing?" the hunter asked.

Cas turned to look at them.

"You've seen it?" he questioned, his interest peaked.

"We think it's in town. Something's forcing people..."

Dean didn't get to finish before the angel disappeared. Him and Elena shared a questioning look.

"Oh, well, you're welcome!" he yelled, turning away and taking a swig.

Cas suddenly reappeared in the same spot.

"It isn't the Horn of Truth." He said.

"But… oh…" Elena said, suddenly realizing what Ruby's mesasge meant.

It's not mine, it's not me. It's not my horn, it's not me doing this.

"What are you talking about? You were gone for like two seconds. Where did you look?" Dean scoffed.

"Everywhere." Cas said simply as if it were no big deal.

"Right. Well, nice seeing you, anyway." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Dean." Cas said.

"What?" he snapped.

"About your brother. I... I don't know what's wrong with him, but I do want to help. I'll make inquiries." He said before disappearing before either of them could react.

"Yeah. Thanks." Dean groaned, sitting on the bed.

Elena wrapped her arms around his neck as he took another small drink.

"Do you want to go to a bar?" she asked.

"Yes please." He sighed.

* * *

"Now, I'd actually like to see all the suicides that came in this week, not just Dr. Giggles. Is that gonna be a problem?" Sam asked as the coroner pulled out the dentist's body.

"Well, they're… they're already gone." The man admitted, sounding slightly guilty.

"As in transferred?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, not exactly." The coroner said, definitely sounding guilt-ridden this time.

"Would you like to tell me what's going on here, or should I have a little chat with your supervisor?" Sam said, narrowing his eyes at him.

"They're gone." He whispered.

"As in... gone gone?" the hunter asked.

The coroner nodded slowly.

* * *

"... consumers from predatory prices. Here's the facts." Elena glanced up at the television as she sipped at her glass of water.

"Tune in weekdays for the newest addition to our award-winning local team." The announcer on the TV said.

"Find out the truth about your layaway living room." The newscaster, Ashley Frank, said.

"Another one?" the bartender asked, noticing that the beer that Dean was nursing was empty.

"Uh, no, thanks. I'm working." Dean sighed.

The bartender glanced between them for a moment until Dean's phone rang.

"Hey, what's up?" he asked.

"All the bodies are gone." Sam's voice floated over the phone.

"What do you mean, they just vanished?" Dean questioned.

"That's what the coroner said. But I got a lead. One of the missing bodies, she died a whole week before everybody else." the other brother said.

"Suicide?" Dean asked.

"Reported as a car accident, but no reason it couldn't have been." He said.

"So then that would make her our patient zero, right?" Elena piped up.

"I'm thinking maybe. Whatever got this whole curse thing rolling started with her. I'm at her place now, corner of Burnham and 159th." Sam said.

"Yeah, give us ten." Dean nodded, hanging up the phone.

Before he slid off of the barstool, he glanced at the bartender.

"You know what? I will have that other one." He sighed.

"Thought you were working." She said, vaguely amused as she got him a beer.

"I am working up to it." Dean sighed, rubbing his eyes.

Elena put her hand on his leg and rubbed soothing circles in the skin just above his knee.

"You okay?" the bartender asked.

"No, not really." He grumbled.

"I talked to local experts to bring you the truth." Ashley Frank's voice cut through their conversation and Elena glanced up at the television.

"On me." the bartender said with a slight smile. "Anything else I can get you?"

At first, Elena automatically grew jealous and protective of Dean until she realized that any flirting from the bartender was most likely harmless since first of all, Dean didn't cheat on Elena and second of all, the bartender was married.

"I'd just like the freakin' truth." Dean sighed, picking the shot of whiskey up and draining it.

Elena gave him a sympathetic voice, knowing exactly what he meant. As much as she wanted to know what the hell was going on with Sam, she also wanted to know what was going on with the apparitions that she was seeing without them being so damn cryptic about it.

"But I'll settle for another one." Dean spoke again.

"Sometimes I think I can't get pregnant 'cause God knows my marriage is a sham." She said in a monotone as she poured another shot.

Elena and Dean stared at her with wide, questioning eyes.

"Why'd I say that? I mean, I've been snorting oxy all day. Why'd I say that?" she said, sounding startled.

It occurred to them at the same time and their eyes met.

"I'm pretty sure I know." Dean admitted.

"I'm Ashley Frank with Frank Talk..." the voice from the television blared into the bar.

"I've got to go. Thank you." Dean said, throwing a few bills onto the counter.

He grabbed Elena's hand and they turned to walk out of the bar, their minds racing with questions and theories. Their path took them past a woman in a particularly low cut dress.

"I'm sitting like this so you'll look at my breasts. I just bought them. I need a lot of attention." She said lasciviously.

Dean and Elena stared at her with surprise for a moment before he smirked.

"Good luck with that."

"Your doctor is very good at his job." Elena confirmed and the woman smiled radiantly as Dean yanked her away from the flirty woman who didn't seem to have a preference for gender as she looked Elena up and down appreciatively.

As they walked outside and into the chilly air, he pulled the phone out and called Bobby.

"Hey, anything you're itchin' to tell me?" he asked, turning the volume up so she could hear as they leaned against the hood.

"Not really. Sorry to disappoint." Bobby said gruffly.

"Ah, that's all right. I'm just testing a theory." Dean said, glancing at Elena.

"Well, I'm here hittin' the books while drinking a nice glass of milk, while watching 'Tori & Dean.'" Bobby announced casually.

Elena bit back a smirk as Dean's brow furrowed.

"Wh… wait, w-who and Dean?" he said, confused.

"Tori Spelling. I'm a huge fan. Girl's a real talent." Bobby said in a completely serious voice.

"Oh, I guess it does work over the phone." Dean said to Elena in a soft voice.

"You know what else? I get a pedicure once in a while… this nice Vietnamese joint."

"Okay. Okay, please stop." Dean said, starting to sound pained as he opened the passenger door for Elena.

"This one gal, Nhung Phuong…" Dean hung his head at Bobby's refusal to stop and Elena stared at the phone with raised eyebrows, not intending on letting Bobby live this down.

"… her name means velvet Phoenix. Tiny thing, but the grip on her. She starts on my toes, and I feel like I am gonna…"

Elena giggled as Dean shook his head with a traumatized look.

"Whoa, whoa! Hey, come on, ma… now I'm scarred for life. Thank you." Dean grumbled.

"I never told anyone that. Why am I telling you?"

Dean shook his head with a look that said that he would rather Bobby wasn't telling him anything.

"Maybe 'cause you're my favorite." Bobby decided.

The 'scarred for life' look disappeared and Dean grinned slightly, nodding as if he was expecting that. Elena laughed again and ran her fingers through his soft hair, marvelling over how it was longer than it had ever been since they met. It was probably about time that he got it cut though she wasn't about to tell him that.

"Although, Sam's a better hunter. Lately, anyway." Bobby declared. "Whoa. Why the hell am I tellin' you this?!" he growled, finally becoming aware of the stuff that was spilling uncontrollably out of his mouth.

"Because I'm cursed." Dean explained.

"Cursed?" Bobby questioned, sounding both surprised and not at all shocked at the same time.

"Yes." He confirmed.

"How is it... that half the time you clean a mess, you end up dirty?" Bobby asked, asking the question that Elena asked herself each time one of the boys got personally dragged into whatever mess their monster of the week was creating.

"Actually, this might be the best thing that's happened to me in a while." Dean decided, smiling slightly with a sparkle of hope in his eyes.

Elena looked at him with confusion.

"What do you mean?" Bobby said, lack of understanding clear in his voice as well.

Suddenly it seemed to dawn on them both at the same time. Elena saw it as a positive. Bobby had a different viewpoint.

"Dean... Dean, what damn fool move are you about to…" he began to lecture the younger hunter.

"I gotta go." Dean interrupted him.

"Okay." Bobby sighed. "But did you know my first girlfriend turned out to be a…"

Elena shook her head with wide eyes, not wanting to hear the end of that sentence. She wasn't the only one.

"No, no!" Dean said, shaking his head emphatically as he snapped the phone shut. "Mnh-mnh. Mnh-mnh."

They both climbed into the Impala and she watched as Dean pursed his lips and twitched them back and forth adorably. He glanced over at her to see a slight smile on her face.

"What?" he asked, unable to keep from smiling back at her.

"I just love you." she shrugged, putting a hand on his cheek.

"Hmm… this truth thing ain't so bad so far." He grinned back, leaning in to kiss her.

Elena drew away slightly, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Are you going to ask me any personal questions?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Why? You got any deep, dark secrets you need to spill?" Dean replied.

Elena shrugged and turned away, hoping that he didn't ask about the apparitions. As much as she'd been open with what was happening with Ruby and Jess, even telling him that Ruby came to her and gave her a message from Gabriel, he had no idea that his father was showing up to her now. She wasn't keeping it from him forever, just until everything was figured out with Sam. One mess to clean up at a time, that's what she kept telling herself. Dean simply leaned in and kissed her just behind her ear before dialing a number.

"It's Sam. Leave me a message." They both heard the younger Winchester's voicemail say.

"Sam, it's me. Listen, we're on our way to you, but if you get this before then, give me a call back. There's a few things I want to ask you." Dean said before hanging up.

* * *

"So, why is there an investigation for a car accident?" the young woman said, staring at Sam with wide eyes.

"It wasn't an accident. Corey committed suicide." Sam corrected her as he sat in a chair, handing the photo that held a picture of Corey and a cat.

She was sitting on a couch across from him and tears suddenly filled her eyes.

"You know... I wondered." She whimpered, the salty drops overflowing and streaming down her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry. I just..."

Sam reached out and handed her a box of tissues with a slightly condescending smile.

"So, you had some idea Corey might have taken her own life?" he asked.

"Well... she had been going through a bit of a hard time lately... at school. And then, um, her cat, Mittens, had just ran away. But, really, it was her boyfriend. She was sure that he was cheating on her. But he was just very good at covering his tracks. Which, of course, made her completely obsessed with…" the female explained.

"… finding out the truth." Sam nodded, finishing her thought.

"Yeah." She agreed.

"You mind if I check out her room?" he asked, pointing upstairs.

He was searching the room and he found a box under the bed. When he opened it, he immediately found the ingredients for a spell, including a cat's skull.

"Sorry, Mittens." He muttered.

* * *

Dean and Elena were walking up the stairs, having been let in by the teary roommate of the first victim. Sam met them halfway holding a flowery box.

"Hey, where you been? I found something." Sam asked, looking between them.

"It can wait. We got to talk." Dean said as they turned to walk back downstairs.

Elena steeled herself for a blowout in case this really did go south. She thought about suggesting that they take it outside first but it was too late.

"Yeah. What's up?" Sam asked casually as they came to a landing on the stairs before climbing the rest of the way down.

Elena walked down a few of the stairs and turned back to face Dean and Sam.

"There's a few things I want to ask you, and, uh, you're gonna tell me the truth." Dean said.

"Uh, yeah, Dean. Of course. What are you talking about?" Sam asked before realizing what he said. "Whoa. Are you saying you're…" he began.

"I asked for the truth. And you know what? I'm getting it. So, like I said, I have a few questions for you. When that vamp attacked me, why did you just stand there?" Dean demanded outright and Elena watched as Sam faltered and sighed heavily.

It took him a moment but he immediately turned on his famous puppy dog eyes look.

"I-I didn't. I froze." He admitted, stammering.

Neither of them believed him, and they had no reason to.

"You froze." Dean scoffed. "You have been Terminator since you got back."

"I don't know. Shock? And then it was too late. I feel terrible about it. Believe me. Dean... I can't lie here. Do you really think I would let something like that happen on purpose? You're my brother. H-how could you even…" he sounded truly devastated and Elena wondered if he might have been really telling the truth.

He had to be, the spell, whatever it was, had to be making him tell the truth. He couldn't lie, right?

"Okay. Okay. Sorry." Dean said, holding his hands up and sounding slightly relieved.

He was thinking along the same lines as Elena.

"I...I thought… I thought I saw something. I..." Elena watched as he broke off, emotion filling his voice.

"I guess I was wrong. It's just been a really, really bad day." Dean sighed, rubbing his face.

"Hey. It's okay." Sam reached out and patted his shoulder comfortingly, a very Sam-like gesture. "I got your back, all right? I always have."

"Thanks, Sammy." Dean said appreciatively.

Sam turned and sighed, smiling slightly at Elena with a flicker of worry still in his eyes at Dean's accusation. She smiled back and rubbed his arm as he passed. As she was looking up at Dean with a shrug, she missed his face go completely blank and emotionless, the spark of worry turning into a spark of triumph.

* * *

"So this was the chick's pet?" Dean asked, holding the cat's skull as he approached the table where Sam was sitting.

"Well, she was obsessed." Sam said, working on his laptop.

"I think you mean crazy." Elena corrected him from where she was lying on her stomach on the bed and flipping through a book.

"All right, so cat skull, uh, grains-of-paradise seed, devil's shoestring." Sam said, taking the skull from Dean as he read from the computer. "Mix 'em well, you got yourself a summoning spell."

"Demon?" Dean quesitoned.

Sam turned the computer around, showing them both a mosaic artwork.

"God. Corey was so desperate for the truth about her boyfriend's cheating heart, she went digging around. Nothing panned out, so she went looking for a different kind of help." He explained.

"Opened a door she couldn't close." Dean realized.

"Yeah. Now anyone in town who asks aloud for the truth invokes Veritas. And she doesn't just give it to you. She slams you with it until you kill yourself and she gets her tribute." Sam nodded.

"So, all that tribute vanishing from the morgue. What do you think, uh, Soylent Green situation?" Dean asked.

"Gods got to eat, too. Which means we got to take her out or you're on the menu." Sam said, gesturing to Dean.

"All right, well, what do we know, besides crazy cat lady?" Dean said, holding up the skull as he took it back from Sam.

"Well, dogs are her Achilles heel." Sam pointed out.

"Naturally." Dean nodded, sounding like he wasn't too fond of them either, for good reason.

"And she was a pretty hands-on goddess back in the day. Her thing was coming down from the mountain to speak truth to the masses. She wanted more than tribute. She wanted to be worshipped." Sam read off.

"An attention whore." Elena said, pushing herself up to sit on her knees.

"If you want to put it that way." Sam agreed.

Dean looked between them, realization dawning in his eyes as he realized exactly who they were dealing with.

"And what is the 21st-century version of speaking truth to the masses?" he said, causing them both to look at him questioningly.

* * *

Elena was waiting outside as Dean and Sam walked out, Sam carrying a desktop computer. She glanced up at the big sign with Ashley Frank's face on it.

"So you really think this God is slumming as some farm-league Diane Sawyer?" Sam asked as he shoved the computer into the trunk.

"Eh, call it a hunch." Dean shrugged, paying off the doorman who let them in.

* * *

Elena was perched on Sam's bed next to him, looking at the laptop where Sam had the computer plugged in. It was showing the reels of news that were filmed each day, all of what was filmed for Ashley Frank.

"I'm Ashley…" she coughed, cutting off. "I'm Ashley Frank, bringing you Frank Talk. Let's do that again." She said, shaking her head and looking a bit too perfect.

"Okay, still rolling." The off-camera producer said.

"I'm Ashley Frank, bringing you Frank Talk." She cut off, looking frustrated. "Again. I'm Ashley Frank. Are organic fruits and veggies really worth the cost?"

Dean was reclining on the other bed drinking coffee and eating a donut.

"She's creepy. I mean, the hair alone." He commented as they watched. "I don't know, man. Maybe there's nothing here."

Sam reached out and increased the speed of the video.

"Maybe." He said simply.

After about an hour, Elena abandoned watching it with him to climb into bed with Dean. They both fell asleep but Sam remained wide-awake, watching all of the reels of the suspected goddess. The next morning, they woke up to find Sam still sitting there watching the video. His bed didn't show any sign of being slept in and he was still wearing the same clothes. Elena and Dean exchanged a hesitant look but didn't say anything about it.

"We're gonna get a shower." Dean announced, pulling her into the bathroom.

She slid up onto the counter as they brushed their teeth after taking a shower, her legs dangling off the end. A towel was wrapped around her chest and one was wrapped around his waist, slung low on his hips.

"Do you think everything is really okay?" she murmured around her toothbrush.

"It has to be. He can't have lied." Dean said, spitting out his paste as he leaned over the sink.

"Yeah." Elena sighed, doubt filling her mind once again.

"Guys?" Sam's voice called.

They both looked back at the door and Elena slid off of the counter. Before Dean could say a word, they were both clad in clothing.

"I love that sometimes." He sighed, referring to her ability to cloth them within a second's time as he pulled her in for a kiss before opening the door.

Sam turned the screen for them to watch.

"Are we still rolling?" the newscaster asked, nervous.

"Check this out." he said.

They walked up to it and watched as the dog behind her had it's front paws on the fence as it growled and barked at her. She flinched and fixed her hair, glancing away from the camera. They both caught sight of a flash of something.

"Zoom in on that." Dean said, pointing at her eyes.

Sam complied, magnifying the screen. They all three saw the non-human glow that told them that Ashley Frank was exactly who they thought she was.

* * *

They were trailing the goddess as she drove a red convertible up to a house. She parked it in the garage and closed the door to the garage as she climbed out.

"Looks pretty normal, right?" Sam asked, cocking his head to the side as they regarded the ordinary looking house.

"I'm sure inside it's chock full of creep." Dean said.

The house's interior lit up as the woman walked through it.

"Ready?" Dean asked as they all held up large knives.

"Yeah." Sam said, holding up a container of dark liquid.

"And that's...?" Elena trailed off, peeking up from the backseat.

"Dog's blood." Sam said simply and unapologetically.

"Do I even want to know where you got that?" Dean asked, wrinkling his nose.

"Probably not." Sam said truthfully.

"Ugh." Dean said, shaking his head as they climbed out of the car.

"All right, let's do this." he said as they approached the house.

They snuck into the house, seeing her walk upstairs as they entered. It still looked considerably normal.

"So where's all the creep?" Sam asked.

A meow sounded and they all looked to see a cat darting around. They followed it to a set of stairs that led down. As they walked, Dean behind Sam and Elena for no reason at all other than the fact that they simply started walking ahead of him. When a high pitched noise cut through the silence, they both looked up at him with wide eyes to see him covering his mouth with wide eyes.

"What? I'm allergic." He hissed, pointing at the cat that seemed to be waiting on them at the bottom of the stairs.

"That was your sneeze?" Elena questioned, fighting back a smirk.

"Yeah, what's it to you?" he growled, obviously self-conscious about his little girl's sneeze.

"Nothing." Elena said, shaking her head.

They walked the rest of the way down and caught sight of a mosaic of Veritas that was the same one they saw on the website. Turning to walk into another room, they immediately found all of the creep that Dean as referring to. The cat was on a gurney lapping at a bloody, mutilated and unrecognizable corpse. The body of the dentist was on another gurney and untouched. Before any of them could hear her approaching, a needle stabbed into Elena's neck, who was standing further back than the brothers. The liquid injected into her system and Elena's eyes rolled up into the back of her head before she collapsed to the ground.

"You came for dinner." Veritas said, grinning as she looked between Dean and Sam, who were staring at Elena's unconscious figure.

The goddess was wearing a more goddess-like dress now. She waved her hand and sent them hurtling off into a large basin in the floor that was used for catching blood. They were both unconscious now.

* * *

Sam came to first, looking around to see that Dean was still unconscious. They were both tied to separate posts. Veritas had their knives and was putting them in a drawer. Dean suddenly jerked awake and started at the bloody torso that was hanging over them.

"Mm. Sit tight." She pointed to the mutilated corpse. "You're up next."

Dean looked at her shocked before looking around to see Elena hanging from the ceiling, chains around her wrists. She was still unconscious. Sam covertly slipped a switchblade from his sleeve, keeping his eyes on the goddess.

"What did you do to her?" Dean growled, looking at Elena.

"I sensed her presence the moment she entered this town. I am a goddess and I've been around for a long time. I know how to deal with a pesky little half angel. It's a simple mixture of mine, a few drops of holy oil, a horse tranquilizer, and a few other little… ingredients." She said, taking a knife and cutting the tongue out of the dentist's mouth.

Dean and Sam watched with disgusted looks.

"The tongue... is the tastiest part. It's where the lies roll off." Veritas said, turning to them and taking a bite out of it.

Dean closed his eyes, sickened.

"Mmm. Mmm! I cannot wait to eat yours. I mean, I've seen liars before, but you two? Gold standard." she put down the tongue and walked over to Elena, walking around her in a circle.

"Point of professional pride." Dean said gruffly as Sam worked his way through the ropes with the blade.

Veritas reached out and stroked Elena's cheek softly, causing Dean to jerk against his ropes.

"She's so powerful. It's a shame." The goddess breathed before walking back to stand in front of Dean.

"I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you, Dean. You know what happens when you base your life on lies, right? The truth comes along and…" Veritas smirked, shrugging as she glanced at SAm. "… so, while you've still got your tongue, God knows you've got an earful."

She knelt next to Dean.

"I think it's your turn to spill some. How bout we play a little truth or truth? What should we ask Dean first, hmm?

Something... personal about you?" Dean glared at her as she glanced over at Sam and then back at him.

"Hey, Dean, I'm curious. What do you really feel about your brother?" she asked.

Dean stared at her, hesitant at first but unwilling to keep his mouth shut.

"Better now. As of yesterday, I wanted to kill him in his sleep." He admitted.

Sam stared at him, surprise halting his movements to cut through the rope for a moment.

"I thought he was a monster. But now I think..." Dean trailed off.

"Now you think what?" Veritas urged him, grinning happily.

"He's just acting like me." Dean said, glaring icily into her eyes.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"It's the gig."

Sam continued slicing, his knife almost through the rope. A small groan came from Elena but she didn't wake up still.

"You're covered in blood until you're covered in your own blood. Half the time, you're about to die. Like right now. I told myself I wanted out... that I wanted a normal life." Dean said, sounding guilty as hell but unable to stop talking.

"But you were lying." she guessed.

"No. But what I'm good at... is slicing throats. I ain't a normal guy. I'm a killer. And there's no changing that. I know that now." He said.

Veritas smiled, patting his shoulder.

"Oh if only our precious Elena was awake to hear this. Don't worry, I'll fill her in later. It's a shame you won't be awake to hear her dirty secrets, though. I'm sure they're delightful." She said before moving over to Sam.

"So, Sam walking back into your life must have been a relief. Hmm? Mallory to your Mickey. And how do you feel about the band getting back together? Hmm, Sam?" Veritas questioned, looking at him with imploring eyes.

Sam and Dean's eyes met for a moment, both of them looking guilty for different reasons.

"Look..." Sam cleared his throat. "… w hat we do... is hard."

Dean glanced up at Elena to see her eyes fluttering open. She lifted her head slightly and their eyes met immediately. Hers were clouded over slightly.

"But... we watch out for each other."

Dean glanced over at Sam, his eyes communicating a plan with him that he hoped he understood.

"And that's what's important. And that's it. That's the truth." Sam finished.

Her smile was slowly fading as he spoke but now she looked dumbstruck. She shook her head slightly.

"No. No, it's not." Veritas said accusingly, standing up.

Dean glanced between them, taken aback by the sudden panic in her voice.

"You said yourself… I can't lie." Sam said, staring up at her.

"How are you doing that? That's not possible. You're lying to me!" Veritas yelled.

Elena groaned and her head fell forwards, her entire body heavy. She couldn't move but she could certainly hear everything.

"No, I'm not!" Sam snapped back, glaring at her suddenly.

"What are you?" Veritas turned to Dean, addressing him. "What is he?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Sam said, still trying to cover for himself but it was too late.

Dean's suspicions already shot back up.

"Really? I doubt that. I doubt anything that comes out of your mouth right now. You're not human." Veritas snapped.

"What?" Dean said, shocked at that.

She turned to him.

"You didn't know that?" his face said it all. "Now, that I believe."

Sam suddenly cut through the rope, tossing the knife to Dean. Then he grabbed one of the blood-soaked knives and rushed at the goddess. She knocked him to the ground with a series of punches, climbing on top of him to punch him. Dean succeeded in cutting through his rope and grabbed a hook lying on the ground near him. He ran forward and impaled Veritas through the back. She turned, her human face replaced with a monstrous one, and screamd at him. Sam took her distraction as a chance, plunging the knife into her heart. She let out a choking noise as Dean stumbled away, finding a set of keys on one of the tables. He quickly set about releasing Elena from the chains, her body collapsing in his arms once he did so.

"Dean… my… belt." She choked out.

He looked down and caught sight of her special dagger in it's sheath tied on one of her belt loops. He knew what she was saying and immediatley yanked it out, whirling around. Sam stopped in place where he was running up to them. Dean brandished the dagger at him.

"Dean, it's me." Sam said pleadingly.

"You are not my brother." he growled, standing protectively in front of Elena where she was lying on the ground.

"Just listen." Sam said, his eyes wide.

"What are you?!" Dean growled.

Elena groggily pushed herself up to a sitting position, feeling like her entire body was filled with lead.

"I'm me, Dean. Look, please, just let me explain." Sam said desperately.

"Why the hell should I believe anything you say?" Dean demanded.

"Okay, okay. You want the truth? Here it is. Here it is. God's honest. She was right. There's something wrong with me, really wrong. I've known it for a while. I lied to you. Yeah. And... I let you get turned by that vamp. Because I knew there was a cure, Dean, and we needed in that nest! And I knew you could handle it!" Sam said, the words coming out of his mouth leaving no doubt in either Dean or Elena's minds that he was finally telling the truth.

"Handle it?! I could've died! I could've killed Elena or Jo!" Dean shouted, fury in his voice.

"And that should stop me cold. But I… I just don't feel it." Sam said.

"You what?" Dean questioned, taken aback by that.

"Ever since I came back, I am a-a better hunter than I've ever been! Nothing scares me anymore! Cause I can't feel it. I don't know what's wrong with me. I think... I need help." Sam admitted, looking emotionless yet solicitous at the same time.

Dean stared at him for a moment, emotion filling his eyes. Then he turned away, kneeling next to Elena.

"You all right?" he murmured, pushing the dagger into her hand.

"Just… feeling drugged up." She mumbled, her eyes not quite clear.

She understood everything that was said, though. She looked up to see tears shining in Dean's eyes. They both understood perfectly. He was Sam but he wasn't at the same time. There was a question in his eyes and she nodded slowly, answering it. Dean leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead before standing slowly. He turned to look at Sam, who was glancing between the other two. Suddenly, the emotion on Dean's face hardened and Sam saw it coming before it happened. But that didn't stop the powerful punch from knocking him off of his feet. Elena looked away as Dean continued to hit Sam until he fell unconscious. That was when she finally realized that she felt nothing from Sam.

It should have been clear to her before but somehow it hadn't occurred to her. She didn't feel that he was in danger. She didn't even feel his presence in her mind even though he was less than ten feet away from her. Yes, something was seriously wrong.

"Cas, we need your help." She whispered through her groggy, drugged state.

* * *

**Author's Note: Please review! Next chapter we meet the alpha vamp, find out what's up with Sam, and there's a surprising scene at the end involving the Campbells.**

**Outfits are on my profile**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, Nyssandria, DrawingMyHeartOut, slayerdiaries, Commander Jack Sheaperd, SwanQueen4055, Hollywood17, xxPaige23xx, diehardromantic, RippahGoneWolf, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, chiwi, and the three guests for reviewing! I love you all and all of my readers so much!**

**To Nyssandria, don't worry. There will be many scenes discussing exactly what you're talking about with Elena and Cas. Also, there will be a long conversation with Elena and Death that has a big reveal in it.**

**To Commander Jack Sheaperd, yes, I think that I love my cliffhangers. :)**

**To diehardromantic, is this a good confusion or a bad confusion?**

**To the guest, there will be a scene with that exact situation, but Elena won't be fighting demons. It also won't happen for a while, possibly not even in this part of the story but most likely the next part. I hope you can be patient with me. I promise I won't disappoint. **

**To Dark-Supernatural-Angel, I am planning on doing something with Sam's soul that is something like that. Elena is only going to call on one person. And you can imagine the same actor as the alpha vamp because that's what I'm going to be imagining.**

**To another guest, yes, the Originals will show up very soon.**

**A few things:**

**1. Thank you for being understanding about my blatant stealing of SPN lines.**

**2. If this chapter seems angsty, it's because I'm still having a lot of feelings about last night's SPN episode.**

**3. For those who think that the whole 'drug to knock out Elena' thing is weird, I brought it into the story for a reason. It will show up again but not for a while. So keep it in the back of your mind to remember later. **

**4. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

"You're right. He looks terrible."

Sam groaned as his eyes fluttered open. He saw a face swimming in front of his own but he couldn't quite put a name to it as his head pounded painfully.

"You did this?" the voice was referring to the still bleeding wounds on Sam's face.

Dean nodded from where he was leaning against the wall. Elena was sitting on the bed rubbing her head and trying to pull herself out of the haze that the drug left behind.

"Cas? What's…" Sam pulled against his binds as the angel reached out and opened one of his eyes wider to inspect it. "Let me go."

"Has he been feverish?" Cas asked without looking away from Sam.

"Have you?" Dean demanded, his arms crossed over his chest.

Elena rubbed her temples, her head pounding. She was really hating Veritas even more now for giving her that drug. If she could have forced it out of her system, she would have.

"No. Why?" Sam asked as Cas took a step back.

"Is he speaking in tongues?" Castiel asked Dean before looking back at Sam. "Are you speaking in tongues?"

"No. What are you..." Sam cut off, realization dawning on him at why he was being asked so many questions. "Are you diagnosing me?"

"You better hope he can." Dean said, a severe look on his face.

"You really think that this is…" Sam began in a disbelieving voice as the angel pressed two fingers to his throat to take his pulse.

"What, you think that there's a clinic out there for people who just pop out of hell wrong?" Dean snapped, standing up and walking towards him.

"He asks, you answer! Then you shut your hole. You got it?" he growled loudly.

Sam sighed heavily and rolled his eyes but remained quiet.

"How much do you sleep?" Cas said once he finished taking his pulse.

Sam hesitated, glancing between Dean and Cas before glancing back at Elena, who was watching the scene quietly. She knew the answer before he said it, having witnessed it.

"I don't." he admitted.

"At all?" Dean asked, surprised even though Elena had warned him that Sam wasn't sleeping as much.

"Not since I got back." Sam said, averting his eyes from Dean's blazing glare.

"And it never occurred to you that there might be something off about that?!" Dean demanded in a raised voice.

"Of course it did, Dean. I-I just never told you." Sam stammered.

Castiel moved, standing beside Sam and looking at Dean hesitantly.

"What?" Dean said, looking back at him..

"Sam... what are you feeling now?" Cas asked, moving to stand beside him with a vaguely suspicious look.

The younger Winchester scoffed slightly.

"I feel like my nose is broken." He said, his eyes flashing to Dean.

The older brother's fists were already healed where the skin had broken from his continuous punches but Dean requested that Elena wait to heal Sam until they could figure out what was wrong with him.

"No, that's a physical sensation. How do you feel?" the angel stressed.

"Well, I think…" Sam began.

"Feel." Castiel interrupted him in a frustrated voice as if he was explaining something to a child.

Sam paused staring at him.

"I... don't know." He admitted.

Cas sighed and looked at Elena.

"I'm going to need your help." He said.

"Cas… I'm not going to be much help to anyone right now." She sighed.

He stared at her strangely.

"What is wrong with you?" he asked, finally seeing the clouded look in her eyes and the pain on her face.

"She was drugged by Veritas." Dean explained.

The angel walked over to her, bending down to look at her. Then he touched his fingers to her head and she felt all traces of the drug disappear from her system.

"Whoa. What did you do?" she breathed, blinking her eyes several times as the pain and the unpleasant side effects were all gone."

"I simply cleansed your system. It should all be gone now. You need to be careful. Where did the goddess get the drug?" he asked.

"She said she made it herself. Why?" Dean said.

"I sensed holy oil as well as myrrh in it, both of which are used in summoning and capturing spells of angels, as you well know. This drug would not have been effective on a full-blooded angel because it is not strong enough nor would it have any implications against humans or demons as they are not weakened by these things. The only being that it could possibly effect is a part-angel. And the only part-angel in existence is…"

"Me." Elena finished his sentence, her eyes wide.

"So what?" Dean asked, wondering what to do with that information.

"Pray that Veritas kept the existence of the drug to herself or else you might have creatures coming for Elena." he said.

"Great." Both of them sighed.

"Uh… guys?" Sam said, drawing his attention back to him.

"Right, I need your help now." Cas said, reaching out his hand and pulling Elena to a standing position once she slid her hand into his.

Then he pulled off his coat and jacket, rolling up one of his sleeves on his white shirt. They all stared at him with surprise, having never seen him so dressed down except for when Jimmy stripped the trenchcoat off when Cas was dragged back to heaven back before Lucifer was ever raised. He almost looked naked to their eyes. He walked back to Sam, Elena following, as he pulled his belt out of the loops.

"What? Uh..." Sam questioned, unsure of why the angel was stripping.

"This will be unpleasant." Castiel warned him.

"What…" Sam couldn't say anymore as he shoved the belt into his mouth.

"Bite down on this. If there's someplace that you find soothing, you should go there. In your mind."

Cas turned to Elena.

"Hold him still. If he moves it will be much more painful."

Elena moved behind Sam and put her hands on his shoulders, effectively locking him in place against the back of the chair. She looked up at Cas for confirmation and he nodded before shoving his hand into Sam's chest. A bright white light emanated from the hole as red light spreaded underneath Sam's skin up to his face. It looked the same as when Cas did the reading of the kid's soul back when Balthazar was spreading around the Staff of Moses. Sam screamed painfully, struggling against Elena's hold uselessly. Dean simply watched with a wide-eyed expression. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Cas withdrew his hand and the belt slid from Sam's mouth as he breathed heavily. His head dropped with exhaustion as Elena stepped around him to look at Cas, whose brow was furrowed.

"Did you find anything?" Dean asked, staring at him.

"No." the angel said in his gravelly voice.

"So that's good news?" Elena asked hesitantly.

Cas glanced at her, shaking his head slightly.

"I'm afraid not. Physically, he's perfectly healthy."

"Then what?" Dean questioned, confused.

"It's his soul." Castiel said, pulling his sleeve down. "It's gone."

Elena's blood ran cold at his words as she and Dean stared at him for a moment while he pulled his clothing back on and did his belt again.

Dean finally scoffed, turning to pace the room. "Um... I'm s… I'm sorry. One more time, like I'm five. What do you mean, he's got no…" he trailed off.

"Somehow, when Sam was resurrected, it was without his soul." The angel explained, moving forward to talk.

"So, where is it?" Elena asked, moving away from Sam to stand beside Dean with wide eyes.

"My guess is... still in the cage with Michael and Lucifer." Castiel informed them.

"So, is he even still Sam?" Dean questioned.

"Well, you pose an interesting philosophical question." Cas began.

"Well, then, just get it back." Dean cut him off from launching into a long explanation about what he meant by an 'interesting' philosophical question.

"Dean." He sighed, looking like he was about to deliver even worse news.

"Well, you pulled me out." the hunter said, furrowing his brow at the angel.

"It took several angels to rescue you, and you weren't nearly as well guarded. Sam's soul is in Lucifer's cage. There's a difference, a big difference. It's not possible." Castiel argued.

"Okay, well, there's got to be a way." Elena said, trying to keep herself calm.

"So, are you gonna untie me?" Sam finally cut into the conversation.

"No." Dean snapped as they all turned to glance at him.

"Listen, I'm not gonna…"

"Sam, how the hell am I even supposed to let you out of this room?" Dean cut him off as he advanced on him with a frustrated and hurt expression, all of his being defeated by this news.

"Dean, I'm not some psycho. I didn't want you to get hurt. I was just trying to stop the vamps." Sam sighed heavily, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. It won't ever happen again. Please let me go."

"You're kidding, right?" Dean said in a softer voice.

"Well, what are you gonna do, just keep me locked up in here forever?" the younger hunter questioned.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Dean scoffed, turning away.

"Okay, fine, look, I get it. I get it, Dean. I was wrong. But I'm telling you I-I'm trying to get right. It's still me." he said in a pleading tone that none of them believed.

"Is it?" Dean said skeptically.

"Yes. So just let me go." Sam said.

"No way in hell." The older brother snapped.

Sam sighed heavily, looking down for a moment.

"I didn't want it to come to this."

All three of them looked at him with similarly raised eyebrows as he struggled a bit. Then he held his hands up as he stood, showing that he was out of the ropes. Elena surged forward, her protectiveness for Dean overshadowing any personal feelings she had about Sam. It was as though not feeling protective over Sam all of the sudden doubled her protection for Dean. She shoved Sam back into the chair, her hand on his chest. Then she glanced around, her eyes wide as she questioned how she moved so quickly. Even Dean and Cas were shocked at her sudden movement.

"I don't know what that was." she admitted, not moving her hand.

"It was your instincts. You don't feel as protective of Sam as you used to." Cas said, looking at her.

"I don't feel anything." She admitted.

"All of your protectiveness is focused at Dean now and, because of what he's done, Sam is now on the threat list to Dean in your mind and your body is reacting to that." the angel explained.

Elena nodded, backing away from Sam with narrowed eyes as she planted herself in front of Dean.

"You're not gonna hold me. Not here, not in a panic room, not anywhere. Not even with Elena protecting you. You're stuck with the soulless guy, so you might as well work with me." Sam said, standing slowly once again. "Let's fix this."

"We're gonna be watching every move you make." Dean said, gesturing between him and Elena.

"Fine. Sounds about right to me." Sam nodded, sounding as though he actually wanted to work with them on this.

"Elena, clean him up." Dean said.

Elena stepped forward hesitantly, pressing her hand to his face and healing his wounds. She immediately stepped back again, her distrust flaring up as their eyes met. She quickly looked away, not wanting to see the emptyness in them that Sam had obviously been trying so hard to hide.

"All right, if we're gonna figure out what happened to your soul, then we need to find who yanked you out." Dean said, trying to come up with a plan. "You say you don't know?"

"No idea." Sam confirmed, looking away from Elena and at Dean.

"Then we start a list. If it's so hard to spring someone out of the box, then who's got that kind of muscle?" Dean asked Castiel.

"I don't know. You have no memory of your resurrection?" the angel questioned Sam.

"I woke up in a field. That's all I got." Sam shrugged.

"No clues? None?" Dean asked.

Sam took a deep breath as he realized something.

"I've got one."

* * *

Elena sighed as they pulled into the Campbell compound. Both she and Dean were tensed up, neither of them trusting these people even if they were family. They pulled up to the main building and got out, walking inside to see a large amount of people gathered cleaning weapons and sharpening stakes.

"Gramps throw a barbecue, leave us off the e-vite list?" Dean questioned.

"Sam!" Christian walked up, laughing and reaching out to shake Sam's hand.

Sam grinned back, pulling him into a hug. Dean and Elena both watched with unimpressed looks, mostly brought on by the presence of their least favorite Campbell.

"Dean. Elena." he said, his smile fading when he saw them.

"Hello, Newman. Where's the man?" Dean asked immediately, not in the mood for pleasantries.

Christian's eyes flashed between them suspiciously before he pointed back to Samuel's office. They moved past him without another word and Sam patted him on the shoulder, throwing him an apologetic look at their lack of conversation. They walked into Samuel's office without knocking or gaining an inviation. The man himself cleared his throat as he looked up.

"Come right on in." he said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Need to ask you a few questions." Dean said simply as Elena shut the door.

"What's wrong?" Samuel said when he noticed their grim faces.

"The day you got back, what happened?" the older brother said as she stepped up beside him, both of their eyes narrowed.

"We've been over this." the older man sighed.

"Well, recap it for our wingman."

Cas appeared right beside Elena, looking at Samuel with a similarly suspicious look as the other two. Sam simply stood a few feet away from them, remaining quiet.

"This Castiel?" Cas nodded.

"You're scrawnier than I pictured." Samuel said, looking the angel up and down.

"This is a vessel. My true form is approximately the size of your Chrysler building." Cas said gruffly, glaring at the man for daring to call him 'scrawny'.

Elena smirked as Dean rolled his eyes and Samuel simply raised his eyebrows.

"All right, all right, quit bragging. So, you were dead, and..."

" And, pow, I was on Elton ridge. Don't know how. Don't know why."

Dean lifted his head slightly, unable to keep a skeptical look out of his eyes.

"I got nothing to hide, guys." Samuel sighed.

"Well, you mind if Cas here double-checks?" Dean asked as Cas slid off his coat and Elena stepped around the table to repeat the same process with Samuel.

Samuel's screams echoed around the room and Elena knew that a Campbell would come bursting in any second. She let go of Samuel just as Cas pulled his hand out and sure enough, Christian came running through the door with a shotgun in his hands.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. It's okay. It's okay. It's okay." Sam said, stopping him in place.

"What the hell?" he demanded, glaring at Elena and Cas, who were standing either side of Samuel, who'd thrown himself out of his chair and up against the wall to catch his breath.

"Angel cavity search." Dean said simply, gesturing to Cas who was pulling his trenchcoat back on.

"I'm fine, Christian. Just give us a minute." Samuel breathed heavily, nodding at the man.

"But…" he began to argue.

"Just give us a minute."

Christian backed away slowly, slamming the door shut behind him.

"What the hell was that about?" Samuel demanded.

"His soul is intact." Cas confirmed as Elena moved to stand beside Dean again.

"What? Of course I have a… what's going on, Sam?" the older man said, his brow furrowed with confusion as he slipped back into his chair.

"Whatever dragged me out... left a piece behind." Sam explained.

Samuel stared at him for a minute before groaning, rubbing his head.

"Did you know?" Elena asked, tilting her head to the side.

"No, but I... I knew it was something. I... you're a hell of a hunter, Sam, but... the truth is, sometimes you scare me." he admitted.

Then his eyes flashed to Dean and Elena.

"So, what's the deal here? How do we fix this? How do we get his soul back?"

"We don't know yet, but we have to." Dean said.

"Well, I'm here to help, of course. What leads you working?" Samuel questioned.

Elena glanced over at Cas, who was staring at the ceiling as they conversed. She was tempted to walk to him and comfort him as she saw a hint of sadness in his eyes.

"A bunch of dead ends and you." Sam said simply.

"Well, then, we'll just have to dig." Samuel said.

"Sam, Dean, Elena ... I have to get back." Cas cut in

"You're leaving?" Dean questioned, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I'm in the middle of a civil war." The angel replied simply, frustrated at the accusing tone in Dean's voice.

"You better tear the attic up, find something to help Sam." Dean said.

"Dean!" Elena hissed, berating him.

"Of course. Your problems always come first. I'll be in touch." Cas nodded.

"Wait." Elena walked forward, looking up at him.

"We're asking you to help us, Cas. But the same goes for you. If you need anything… anything at all… you come to us, okay?" she said honestly, hoping to convey the depth of her offer to him.

For a moment, it looked as though he would say something as his face slid into a tenderer look rather than the hardened look he seemed to be adopting lately when they saw him. Then it suddenly hardened again and she felt a pang of sadness and a rush of anticipation, as if something was trying to warn her that something bad was coming and it had something to do with what was going on in heaven.

"Thank you." he said simply before disappearing.

Elena glanced back at Dean and Sam.

"Would've asked him to stick around for a beer." Samuel commented, standing up.

"So, what's with the book club outside?" Dean questioned, finally wanting to satiate his curiosity on that subject and also wanting to get away from the 'Sam has no soul' topic for now.

"Putting together a hunt." Samuel said simply, looking at Sam meaningfully.

"That's a lot of guys for one hunt." Dean said skeptically.

"You found him, didn't you?" Sam said, figuring it out almost immediately.

"Who?" Elena asked, frowning slightly.

"He's got a lead on the alpha vamp." The younger Winchester breathed.

Dean and Elena both looked at Samuel with wide eyes.

"Do you?" Dean questioned.

"Maybe. Yeah." Samuel said.

Dean chuckled slightly.

"How'd you track him down?"

"We're good." The older hunter said simply.

"That's all I get? We're good?" Dean scoffed.

"When's the run?" Sam interrupted.

"Dawn."

"You didn't call me? Why?"

There was a moment of loaded silence that Dean and Elena both understood immediately.

"Cause of us. You don't trust us very much, do you? Especially when it comes to big game like this." Dean said, staring at Samuel.

"That's not true." Samuel sighed, shaking his head.

"Okay, well, then, we're in." Dean said definitively.

"No offense, but…" he began.

"So you don't trust us." Elena cut him off.

"No, I just don't know you." his eyes flickered between them and over to Sam. "Not like I know Sam."

"All right. You call the plays. 100%. We're here to listen." Dean said, taking Elena's hand as she tremored with annoyance.

It didn't suit either of them very well to be put in the corner. Especially since they were suspicious of everyone right now.

"Since when?" Samuel chuckled.

"Big daddy bloodsucker? I ain't gonna miss that. But this is your deal. Okay? I get it. We'll follow your lead. I trust you." Dean said, causing Elena's grip to tighten on his hand slightly.

* * *

"I don't trust him." Dean and Elena said at the same time as they exited the compound and walked towards the Impala.

They exchanged looks, both of them agreeing.

"Dude's hiding something." Dean confirmed.

"What?" Sam said, furrowing his brow.

"I can feel it. And if you weren't Robo-Sam, you'd feel it, too." Dean said simply.

"Huh." Sam said after a moment.

They both turned to face him, their brows furrowing.

"What?" Dean demanded, a no-nonsense tone in his voice.

"Just... you. Saying you don't trust family." Sam shrugged.

Dean glanced over at Elena with a frustrated look before looking back at Sam.

"Look, we hang close, we blend in, we see what we can pick up."

"You think Samuel's connected to this whole soul thing?" Sam asked.

"I still think he's the only lead we got." Dean sighed.

* * *

After their conversation, they walked back into the compound to see what they could figure out. Sam remained in the main room with Christian as Dean and Elena snuck back towards Samuel's office. Dean knocked on the door and there was no answer so Elena quickly unlocked the door and slipped inside first. Dean was about to walk in until he heard a voice.

"You lost, Dean?" Christian said from the hallway, obviously not having seen Elena slide in.

"Had to make a phone call. Just needed some privacy." Dean said, closing the door slightly.

She crouched behind the desk so that Christian wouldn't see her when he peeked in.

"Oh. Samuel's locked office is pretty private." The other hunter commented.

Elena opened the drawers of the desk silently and began sifting through the papers and things to see if she could find anything. All she really found was a picture of Mary.

"Wasn't locked." Dean shrugged simply.

"Who you calling?" Christian asked, trying and failing to sound casual.

"Your wife. Let her know I'm not gonna make it over tonight." Dean said snarkily.

Elena rolled her eyes, wondering how he hadn't gotten himself beat up more for his sarcasm.

"You know, I've tried playing nice, Dean, but I think I'm done." Christian said, all amusement gone from his voice.

"Wait, are you trying to tell me that you're a bigger knob than you've been letting on?" Dean asked, stepping up with a smirk.

"I'm the guy who's been here, doing my job. Who are you? You think we need you here? You walk around like you're playing pro tennis. Only action you seen lately is between your slut girlfriend's legs."

Dean was smirking until the last comment but his smile suddenly disappeared. Elena winced and gripped the desk tightly as she heard Dean grab Christian and slam him against the wall. She could practically feel the fury radiating from Dean even where she was.

"You sure you want to come with us tomorrow? Accidents happen." Christian said, taunting Dean now that he'd gotten a rise out of him.

Dean let him go, stepping away.

"Hmm. Don't worry, man. I got your back." he said, patting his arm before walking away.

Elena closed her eyes and disappeared, reappearing in the hallway that Dean turned into. He didn't jump when he saw her, as if he'd been expecting her to be there. She simply grabbed him and kissed him once he reached her. He kissed her back with passion, as if he wanted to prove that he loved her after Christian's comment. She drew away, putting her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly, her chin on his shoulder as he lifted her and squeeezed her back. Her eyes met Christian's as he rounded the corner and she glared at him, informing him that she knew exactly what he'd said.

* * *

Elena was curled up in the back as they drove to the location that wasn't too far away. Once she climbed in the car, she immediately changed her clothes with a snap of her fingers into more suitable ones for the hunt. They arrived on a dirt road and everyone stopped, climbing out and passing around weapons. Elena was handed a machete by Samuel himself.

"The house is just over the hill. About a dozen vamps and the alpha. We got one shot at this son of a bitch." He said, looking around at everyone. "Christian, Elena… take flank. The rest of you are with me and Sam. Dean, Gwen... hang back, sweep any stragglers we flush out."

Elena glanced at Dean, surprise in her eyes that he was being left behind and she was being sent off with Christian.

"Problem, Dean?" Samuel asked at his put-off expression.

"No, sir." He said, biting back his real opinion of the matter.

"I'm in the rear with the reject?" Gwen demanded, glaring at Samuel.

"All right, let's go." Samuel said.

"Don't worry. It's fine." Sam said as Elena hung back with them.

She could feel Christian's impatient glare as she looked up at Dean.

"No, nothing's fine. You're not fine. Go." he said, frustration evident in his voice.

Then he looked at Elena once Sam walked off and his face softened a little bit.

"Go." he murmured, stroking her cheek softly.

She turned and turned to walk towards Christian.

"Sorry you had to leave your lover boy behind. I guess you're just the better choice." Christian said with a smirk as they walked into the trees to come around the back of the cabin.

Elena glared over at him.

"You sure you want to be assigned to work with me, Christian? Accidents happen." She said, repeating what he said to Dean.

His eyes flashed and he looked away, obviously keeping his mouth shut.

* * *

"Sorry about the reject thing." Gwen said, walking over to Dean.

"Ah, I've been called worse." Dean shrugged.

"Just, uh, get sick of getting left behind. Think it's probably cause I remind him of his daughter or something." She said, frustrated as he was.

"Well, you just speak your mind." He said, smiling slightly to put her at ease.

"I'll take that as a compliment." She said, smiling back.

"You should." Dean nodded, thinking of both his mother and Elena, who had no problem speaking their minds.

* * *

"So why are you with Dean?" Christian asked in a low voice as they walked up to the house.

"Pardon me, but I think that's none of your damn business." Elena hissed back, readying her machete.

"I'm just saying… girl like you in those pretty clothes… shouldn't you be at the mall with your metrosexual boyfriend drinking Starbucks?" he shrugged.

Elena heard a branch snapped and she whirled around, shoving Christian out of the way and beheading the vampire who was sneaking up on him.

"Instincts a little off, Christian? Maybe you need to work on doing your job a little better." She snapped, wiping the blood off of her face that splattered onto it.

He didn't have time to make a comeback as screams began emanating from the house. They both surged forward to run into it, immediately finding themselves in a fight with the vampires.

* * *

They were simply pacing around the area around the cars when they both heard a branch snap. Gwen walked forward and was immediately thrown to the ground by a snarling vampire. Dean ran up and threw him into the van. The vampire overpowered him after a few moments of struggling and Dean was thrown down on his back. The creature started forward and loomed over Dean for a moment before his head was cut off. Dean was splattered with blood as the body fell to the ground just next to him.

"You're welcome." Gwen said, helping him up.

They suddenly heard gunshots from the house and Dean yanked up his machete before taking off towards it.

"We're supposed to wait here!" she called after him.

He crept up to the house, finding bodies of vampires strewn left and right.

"Dean!" he looked up to see one of the other women that came with them pounding on the glass with a panicked expression.

She was suddenly yanked back and after a few moments, blood splattered the window violently. He jumped slightly but was relieved when Elena pulled back the curtain and revealed that she saved the woman, who was standing there looking shaken. Their eyes met and hers widened. She disappeared from the window and he went up to the house once he heard Samuel yell his brother's name from around the corner. He heard snarling and the sound of metal jingling.

"Careful, now!" Samuel yelled.

"Yeah. Got him." he heard Sam reply.

He snuck around and jumped out of his skin when a hand clamped down on his arm. He immediately turned to see Elena.

"What are you doing?" she hissed.

He held his finger to his lips and took her hand, pulling her around the house.

"They told me to stay inside and take down any stragglers while they took care of the alpha." Elena whispered.

They looked around the corner to see Sam, Samuel, Christian, and a few others leading a hooded figure to the van.

"Get in." Samuel growled once they finally reached it.

"That's the alpha." Dean murmured, his eyes wide.

Elena saw Sam begin to turn around and she seized the back of Dean's jacket, yanking him backwards.

"Get back to Gwen, now!" she said, shoving him in the direction of the woods unapologetically before running back into the house.

"Where were you?" Gwen demanded once he ran up.

"Everything all right here?" Samuel said.

They turned to see the group walking back, all of them present, luckily, and all looking tired after killing the entire nest. Elena was trailing just behind Sam. Dean finally noticed that her hands were bloodstained as well as her machete. Other than that, she looked like she'd just walked out of a beauty salon, not a hair out of place. It took a while, but she finally got the hang of hunts and managed to (mostly) remain untarnished by them.

"Just, uh, chopped up a runner. No big deal. How'd it go?" Gwen asked, avoiding Dean's eyes as Elena walked straight to him.

"Rough, but one alpha down." Samuel said.

"Where is it? Want to pay my last respects." Dean asked with a smirk, taking Elena's hand.

"Well, bring marshmallows. Already on the pyre." Samuel said simply, climbing into a van with Christian driving.

Elena squeezed his hand comfortingly, leading him back to the Impala. She climbed into the back once again. Dean's hands were tight as they drove down the road. He let them fall behind the group on purpose.

"Things go okay back there?" Dean said, his question directed at Sam with a stern voice.

"Fine." Sam shrugged.

"Nothing weird?" he snapped.

Sam didn't pick up on the anger in his voice because he shook his head casually. Suddenly the tires screeched and Elena lurched forward as he came to a sudden stop.

"Dean…" she began but he was already out of the car with the engine shut off.

He slammed the door just as her and Sam were climbing out. She watched while he walked towards the hood.

"I saw you walk that alpha out the door, Sam!" He growled, turning towards him. "Now, call me crazy... but that seems weird!"

"Oh." Sam sighed.

"Oh." Dean nodded, agreeing with Sam that he was caught.

"You weren't supposed to know about that." he said.

Elena watched as Dean's hands balled into fists.

"Know what?" she asked, turning her head to look at Sam.

"It's just something Samuel's been doing. Catching things, taking them somewhere, grilling them for info." Sam explained as if there was nothing wrong with it.

"Grill. Torture, right? And not telling me… that was his idea?" Dean demanded.

"No, it was mine." Sam corrected him.

There was a moment of silence as Dean and Elena took in the information with taken aback faces.

"Why?" Dean finally said.

"Honestly? Cause you'd mess it up. You shoot first, ask questions later, and we needed to ask questions." Sam said simply as if he was discussing a football game.

"You know, I-I don't care if you've got soullessness or the freakin' mumps, man! You know better than this! Do you even want your soul back?" Dean yelled as he paced and rubbed his forehead, his anger boiling over.

Elena was tempted to stop him but she wanted to hear this as well. Plus, Dean deserved to yell at his brother for a while after what he went through.

"How does that have anything to do…" Sam said, his brow furrowed.

"Have you been to the place where Samuel takes them?" Dean interrupted. "I mean, have you been in on these interrogations?"

"No, but I hear…" he said.

"And why?" the older brother cut the younger off once again. "And did it ever occur to you that this is really shady?"

"He's our grandfather." Sam said as if that explained everything.

"Yeah." Dean nodded with an unimpressed look. "Yeah, a guy who talks a great game. But you can't assume that family means the same thing to him as it does to us. He's not Dad."

Sam looked down at his feet, looking as though this was new information to him.

"Wow. You don't see it, do you?" Dean said, looking as though something new occurred to him.

"What?" Sam asked.

"You've got no instinct." Dean said, shaking his head and scoffing. "I mean, you are seriously messed up."

Elena could detect a hint of worry in his voice and knew that he wasn't just trying to hurt Sam with a sarcastic comment. This was serious.

"Thanks." Sam said dryly, obviously not picking up on the concern in his voice.

"I'm not kidding, man." Dean looked down slightly, shaking his head.

"Nobody's forcing you to work with me, okay?" he glanced back up at Sam. "But if we do this... I drive the bus, I call the shots, and you tell me everything, whether you think it's important or not, because, trust me, you can't tell the difference!"

Sam straightened up, looking a little offended at Dean's words but he couldn't be if he couldn't feel anything, right? An idea began to form in Elena's head.

"Or, you know what, go… go with Samuel. See how that goes. It's up to you." Dean snapped.

* * *

"Samuel?"

The older hunter started as he turned from where he was standing in front of the desk and facing away from the door to see Sam standing there.

"Damn, kid. Learn how to knock. Where's your brother and Elena?" Samuel said, glancing behind him to see that no one was there.

"Gone." Sam said simply.

"What do you mean, gone?"

"I mean they left about an hour ago. Dean and I just weren't seeing eye-to-eye anymore, I guess." Sam shrugged casually.

"That's too bad." Samuel said, noting the lack of care in Sam's face and voice.

"I want in." Sam said, changing the subject.

"In?" the older man asked, leaning back against his desk.

"On the interrogations, on everything. I can help. This family… this is it for me now. Whatever you need, I'll do." Sam said, sounding a bit desperate.

"Yeah, I know you will." Samuel sighed, rubbing the side of his face.

"Great." Sam nodded.

"But until we can figure out this soul business of yours, I need you to keep doing what you're doing." he informed him.

"But I can…" Sam began.

"No you can't." Samuel cut him off and then sighed. "I'm sorry."

There was a moment of silence before Sam nodded.

"Right." he said, turning back to the door.

Samuel watched as he walked out, closing it behind him.

* * *

Elena was stroking Dean's hair softly as he leaned his head back against the backseat. Neither of them were saying a word, contented in the silence that filled the car other than the soft music playing. They were parked just outside of the compound waiting on Sam to get back… if he came back.

"I hear Tijuana is great this time of year." She said.

Dean let out a chuckle and Elena smiled, triumphant that she got that much out of him. The door suddenly opened and they both looked to see Sam climb into the passenger's seat.

"Hey." Dean said, unable to keep a hint of surprise out of his voice.

Sam didn't miss the subtle emotion this time.

"You didn't think I'd come back." he said.

"I figured 60/40." Dean shrugged.

Sam shrugged as well, as if he wasn't surprised at this information.

"So, Samuel didn't take the bait. So I went with plan B." Sam explained.

"We had a plan B?" Dean asked, this being news to him.

"Fired up the GPS on one of his cellphones. We should be able to track him right to the alpha." Sam said, opening his laptop and typing on it to bring up a map.

"The old man won't notice?" Elena asked, leaning forward to put her elbows on the seat.

"Trust me. He thinks Velcro is big news." Sam scoffed.

The phone began beeping and they saw a dot that was on the move on a map.

"There. Got him."

* * *

They were straggling behind Samuel and Christian, who were in Samuel's van. They got to a warehouse that was about an hour away. The van was parked by a particularly large building and they watched as Samuel and Christian entered through the door. Dean pulled to a stop and they got out, their handguns and machetes out and ready just in case as they walked through the rain to the door. Dean reached out and pulled on it but it was locked.

"Dead man's blood?" Sam said, trailing his hand over the scarlet liquid on the door.

"Smart. Lock the place down with vamp repellent." Dean sighed, staring at the door.

Elena reached her hand out and concentrated, unlocking it with her mind and causing it to swing open slowly.

"I knew we kept you around for a reason." Dean murmured, taking her outstretched hand as they walked inside.

They walked through the corridors silently, listening for anything. They reached a large hallway and heard a noise, looking up in time to see Christian walk out of a room and close the door behind him, a shotgun in his hand. Dean dragged Elena and Sam into the shadows in a room, ducking behind boxes of stuff, hoping that he didn't look into it and see them as he passed. He stopped suddenly once he was past and they all held their breath. He walked back and peeked into the room without looking behind the boxes. Then the hunter shrugged and walked back out, moving on down the hallway.

Once they were out of the room and deemed it safe, they walked towards the room that Christian came out of, hearing voices from inside. They peeked into the slightly open door to see a cage with a man sitting inside all tied up with chains.

"Where is it?" Samuel asked, standing in front of the cage.

Silence filled the room as the alpha vamp refused to talk.

"Answer the question. Where is it? How do we find it?"

Still nothing. Dean glanced over at Elena and Sam, who were standing side by side on the other side of the door. They all peeked in again to see Samuel switch on something and electricity hummed, suddenly surging through the alpha's body, who didn't react at all, simply smiling as if he was in on a joke that Samuel wasn't.

"Ouch. Stop. That hurts." He said sarcastically.

Samuel turned it off, glaring at the creature.

"This…" he gestured to the cage. "…this is club med compared to what we have planned for you. I got…"

Samuel chuckled. "I got all the time in the world."

"Well, that makes two of us." The vampire said.

Samuel picked up a machete and made a move to walk forward as if he would chop the vampire's head off here and now. But instead, he stopped and stared at the smirking creature. Then he gave him another glare before throwing the weapon down and turning to stomp out through a different door. The vampire suddenly chuckled once his footsteps disappeared.

"Are you three going to hide all night? Come on out."

They all exchanged looks before hesitantly walking in, Elena in the middle with the boys flanking her.

"How can I help you?" he asked as if they were meeting in a coffee shop instead of in a warehouse where he was chained and caged.

"We got some questions for you, skippy, since you're going nowhere fast." Dean said, gesturing to the cage.

The vampire chuckled, looking amused.

"Don't be so sure."

"Yeah? Locked down pretty tight. And with all that dead blood rushing through your veins, not sure you got enough juice to fire up that psychic bat-signal of yours, do you?" Dean said, glancing at the needle connected to a jug of dead man's blood that was stuck in his neck.

"True. Not near enough juice for that... Dean." The vampire said, his voice cryptic-sounding.

Dean tilted his head to the side slightly.

"I didn't realize we were on a first-name basis." He said.

"Of course we are. After all, you were my child... for a time. Dean, tell me... did you enjoy it?" the alpha asked, leaning forward.

Dean glared at him, anger sparking in his eyes as he stomped forward.

"I'm asking the questions here, fright night." He snapped, switching on the machine and causing electricity to spark as it surged through him.

Elena winced at the sight of Dean using torture even though it wasn't originally his idea.

"When your kind first huddled around the fire, I was the thing in the dark! Now you think you can hurt me?" he snapped.

Dean stared at him for a moment before turning it off and stepping back, the smell of burnt skin hanging in the air even though the vampire claimed to be unhurt by the torture.

"I have all night, boys. Anyway, I'm happy to tell you whatever you want to know." The vampire said.

"Why?" Sam asked.

"Why? Because soon, I'll be ankle-deep in your blood, sucking the marrow from your bones." he said, smirking triumphantly.

"So you're really it. The first of your species." Sam questioned, looking elated by the information.

"The very first." He agreed.

Elena squinted at him.

"But if you're the first... who made you?" she asked curiously.

"We all have our mothers. Even me." the alpha said simply.

"What does that mean?" Dean questioned.

The vampire simply chuckled yet again.

"And what's with the big surge of vamps lately? I mean, it's like…"

"Like we're going to war." He finished Dean's sentence.

"Why? What's going on? Why did Samuel bring you here?" Sam asked.

The vampire looked at the younger brother, sniffing the air.

"You smell cold." Elena and Dean both glanced at Sam, who was staring at the vampire. "You have no soul. What an oddity. Do you feel how empty you are? What is it like to have no soul?"

Sam didn't open his mouth to answer, simply staring back at the creature.

"Answer my question." The alpha said, narrowing his eyes.

"You first. You're the one in the cage." Sam shot back.

"The thing about souls, if you've got one, of course, is they're predictable. You die, you go up or down. Where do my kind go?" the alpha said philosophically.

"All right, enough with the sermon, freak." Dean snapped.

"I'm trying to answer the question. Now, when we freaks die... where do we go? Not heaven, not hell. So?" he said, looking at them with a significant look.

"Legoland?" Dean shrugged, annoyance clear in his voice.

The vampire sighed.

"Little rusty on our Dante, boys?" he asked before looking straight at Elena.

"Purgatory." She breathed, her eyes widening.

"Purgatory? Purgatory's real?" Dean said, looking at Elena and then back at the cage.

"Oh, stupid cattle." He said, shaking his head and laughing. "Of course! And it is filled with the soul of every hungry thing like me that ever walked this earth. Now, where is it? That is the mystery. And that is what your kindhearted granddaddy is trying to beat out of me."

They all stared at him with their expressions holding even more surprise now.

"Samuel brought you here... to find out where Purgatory is?" Sam asked.

"I keep telling him… how would I know such a thing? But he refuses to untie me." the vampire said, the hidden undertones in his voice telling them that he was lying.

"You know exactly where it is. Why does Samuel care about any of this?" Sam asked.

"He doesn't care. He does as he is told." The alpha informed them.

They all remained silent for a moment, digesting the information.

"Well, if the old man's Kermit... whose hand's up his ass?" Dean wondered.

A gun suddenly cocked and they all turned to see Samuel standing there with Christian and another goon.

"Evening, guys." The older hunter said, his eyes flashing between them.

Christian and the other guy walked forward, grabbing Sam and Dean. Elena raised an eyebrow at the goon when he reached out to grab her arm too.

"If you want to keep your hand, I wouldn't do that." Dean warned him.

The goon scoffed, obviously not having heard about Elena as he reached out to grab her arm anyways. She quickly grabbed his wrist and snapped it, causing him to yell out and fall to the floor as another two guards ran in at the noise.

"Hey!" she turned to see Christian pressing the barrell of his shotgun to the back of Dean's head.

"I'm warning you, I'm faster than you." Elena warned him.

"You sure? I'm a pretty good shot at this range." He said, glaring at back at her.

"Even if you do kill him, what's to stop me from snapping your neck before his body hits the floor? Just for vengeance's purposes." Elena asked, knowing that she wouldn't actually kill the Campbell.

She would beat him to a pulp, sure, but she wouldn't kill him. However, Christian didn't know that because he didn't know her.

"Stop." Samuel said, grabbing Sam and dragging him out to the hall away from the alpha.

Christian gestured for her to follow and she did, only because she wanted to know what the hell was going on and she knew that Dean could get them to talk. Only Christian and Samuel surrounded them as they pulled out all of their weapons and threw them into a pile, obviously confident that they could keep them restrained alone.

"Wow, you know, I have seen some stupid in my time, but you take the crown. Putting Jaws in a fishbowl? How do you think that's gonna end? I don't know what kind of game you're running…" Dean said as they pulled out all manner of weapons.

Elena threw down her dagger unwillingly, feeling sick at parting with it and she knew that it was because it was her one true weapon that was forged just for her use.

"What, do you think I'm doing this for kicks?" Samuel snapped.

"I think you've got the rest of these feebs convinced that you're John Wayne. So whatever you're doing, whatever you're hiding... it's gonna put you and everyone around you in the ground." Dean growled.

Samuel stepped towards him with an angry look and Dean immediately disarmed him. Sam did the same to Christian as he was distracted by them. Elena bent down and grabbed her blade and unsheathing it before dropping the sheath to the ground. A gun suddenly cocked and they looked to see Gwen standing there with a shotgun pointed at Dean.

"Hi." She said simply.

"Gwen." Dean sighed as they dropped the weapons. "And I thought we had something special."

Elena disappeared from the spot and reappeared behind Gwen, pressing the dagger to her throat.

"Hi." She whispered in her ear, repeating the woman's greeting.

* * *

The alpha vampire glanced up at the guard who was watching him. He was slowly scraping his long nail against the cuffs around his wrists, slowly but surely whittling the iron down.

"Are you scared of me? I would be."

He chuckled as the guard approached the switches for the electricity.

"Go ahead." The vampire urged him.

He turned on the electricity and it crackled loudly as the alpha easily broke out of the binds on him.

* * *

Samuel and Christian were aiming guns at her as she held the blade to Gwen's throat, who was still aiming her gun at Dean, who was standing next to Sam with his eyes flashing to everyone. A loud scream from the main room where the alpha was suddenly interrupted their standoff.

"Grab your stuff." Samuel said, turning to run in the direction of the room.

Elena shoved Gwen away and ran forward to grab her gun and machete, shoving the knife back in the sheath as she tied it around her belt. They ran behind the Campbells into the room to find the guard dead and the cage empty.

Samuel sighed heavily.

"How much dead man's blood we got left?" he asked as he circled the cage.

Christian held up two syringes and they all three raised their eyebrows at that.

"How long till the alpha's 100%?" Dean questioned, the 'I told you so' unspoken.

"Hour. Maybe less." Samuel said. "We need to get him dosed up and back in the cage."

"No." Dean snapped, his voice signalling that it was his turn to take charge.

"What do you mean, no?" Samuel asked, squinting at him.

"I mean, I don't know what your big plan was, but playing catch is not on the table." He said definitively.

"Dean…" the oldest hunter sighed.

"We take the thing's head off, or it kills us all! You know that!" Dean yelled, causing Samuel to fall silent before he nodded slightly.

"Okay. We split up. Clear every room. You get a shot, you take it. It's not gonna kill him, but dude will move a lot slower without any kneecaps. And if we make it through this, you, me, Elena, and Sam are having one hell of a family meeting."

Elena felt both happy that she was included in the family meeting and shaky at the idea of a millenia old vampire stalking them through a gigantic warehouse. She was walking with Dean and Gwen while Sam was with Samuel and Christian. They heard a shout of panic and began running towards the other group.

* * *

"You think he ran out?" Christian asked softly as they walked through a hall and inspected room as they passed.

They finally made it back to the main room and Samuel and Sam turned to face Christian. Suddenly the vamp appeared behind them and Christian turned just in time to have his neck snapped.

"No!" Samuel shouted in panic, shooting at the vampire.

It didn't slow the alpha down and he threw Samuel at the wall before rounding on Sam. He easily disarmed him and shoved him against the wall.

"The boy with no soul. I've got big plans for you. It's amazing how that pesky, little soul gets in the way. But not for you. You will be the perfect... animal." He informed Sam, choking him.

Suddenly two syringes came out of nowhere and stabbed into the vampire's neck, causing him to collapse to the ground. Sam looked to see Christian standing there with black eyes.

"Christian?" he said with shock as Dean, Elena and Gwen ran into the room.

A bright flash filled the room and suddenly three demons were standing around the alpha vampire holding him back as he was weakened once again. Then they all suddenly disappeared, including Christian, as Samuel clambered to his feet. Slow clapping sounded and they all looked around with wide eyes to see a new figure standing up on the higher level walkway surrounding the room.

"Well, that was dramatic." Crowley said, leaning on the railing with a slight smirk.

"Crowley?" Sam said, staring up at him along with the rest of them.

"Hello, boys. Elena. What an unexpected treat." He said, his eyes flickering over them as he walked down to the ground floor.

"Bring Christian back now." Samuel said, starting forward.

"I'm sorry?" Crowley questioned, looking at the oldest Campbell.

"My nephew! The one you just crammed a demon into!" Samuel yelled.

"Oh. No. I had him possessed ages ago." they were all shocked at the news. "Samuel, really. I keep an eye on my investments."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. You two know each other?" Dean demanded, looking between his grandfather and the demon.

Both him and Elena had their faces screwed up in concentration as they tried to figure out what was going on.

"Not in the biblical sense. More of a business relationship, I'd say." Crowley said.

"You're Crowley's bitch." Sam realized at the same time as the other two.

"It's not what you think." Samuel sighed, glancing back at them as he wanted to explain.

"It's precisely what you think. That alpha he's caught me is getting him a gold star." Crowley said simply.

"Since when do you give a crap about vampires?" Dean demanded.

Crowley glanced over at Dean, moving past Samuel to stand in front of them instead.

"Since, uh... what's today… Friday? Since, let's see… mind your business." The demon said, pointing at Dean before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking past them towards the door.

"You may as well share with the class, Crowley. We know you're looking for Purgatory." Elena said, glaring at him.

She still wasn't over him screwing Bobby over and taking his soul in the deal. He stopped, turning to look at them.

"So you heard about that?" he said, raising an eyebrow at her furious voice.

"Yeah. You want to tell us why?" Sam questioned.

"Isn't it obvious? Location, location, location." A moment of silence filled the room and he rolled his eyes. "I'm a developer. Purgatory is vast, underutilized, and hell-adjacent, and I want it."

"What for?" Dean asked, glaring at the demon as well but he was holding Elena back from ripping his big head off.

"Best shut your gob. Employees don't question management." Crowley said, smirking back at Dena.

"We ain't your employees." Dean scoffed.

"Of course you are! Have been for some time now, thanks to gramps."

They all looked over at Samuel to see him wearing a guilty expression.

"I don't keep Captain Chromedome around for his wit, do I? Samuel knows things. More than any of you, actually."

Elena, Sam, and Dean looked back at him while Gwen continued staring at Samuel with a betrayed and disgusted expression.

"Walking encyclopedia of the creepy and the crawly. And I knew... you two are so hung up on family-loyalty nonsense, he said jump, you'd get froggy." Crowley explained.

"Yeah, well, the game's over." Dean said with a smirk that held a lot of anger behind it.

"Yeah, well, afraid not, not if you want to see Sam's soul ever again." The demon said, smirking as he put his cards on the table for all to see.

"You're bluffing." Sam accused him.

Crowley regarded Sam with amusement in his eyes before he glanced at the oldest hunter.

"Tell them, Samuel."

"He pulled us both back, me and Sam." Samuel said hesitantly.

"What? You knew?" Sam said, staring at him with wide eyes.

"No, Cas says it takes big-time mojo to pull something like that off, and you're nothing but a punk-ass crossroads demon." Dean said, glaring at Crowley along with Elena.

"Was a punk-ass crossroads demon. Now? King of hell." Crowley corrected him. "Believe me, I've got the mojo. I snap my fingers, Sam gets his soul back."

Elena found herself wishing that she could go back and unmake the deal with Crowley, whether it gave them Death's location or not. It was because of that deal that they were where they were. It was because of that deal that Crowley was given a year of assured protection to build up his status as King of hell.

"Or you can be... you, and I shove Sam right back in the hole. Can't imagine what it's like in there... and I can imagine so many things." Crowley said, staring at Dean.

Silence reigned in the room for a few moments.

"So, we clear? Me, Charlie... you, angels."

Elena and Dean couldn't keep the disgusted looks off of their faces as Sam simply stared at Crowley with that emotionless look that they were still having to get used to.

"Job's simple enough… bring me creatures. Aim high on the food chain, please. Everybody wins. It's been a pleasure. See you soon." The demon said, smirking around them all before disappearing.

After a few moments of staring at the spot where he disappeared, Elena, Dean, Sam, and Gwen all turned to Samuel with accusing looks.

"It's time to go. Get the van." He said simply, turning to walk off as their glares pierced him.

"You're letting a demon call the shots?" Gwen demanded, sounding as angry as the rest of them.

"Nothing's changed. We hunt. Period. Don't worry about him. I'll take care of it." Gwen hesitated, staring at Samuel. "You trust me or not? Get the van, Gwen."

She looked at each of them before turning to walk out.

"Working with a demon, huh?" Sam said, walking forward as Samuel packed up his duffle. "You're not who I thought you were."

"You don't know anything about me, son." Samuel sighed.

"So, what's so important that you're the king of hell's cabana boy, huh?" Dean asked, taking Elena's hand as he walked towards Samuel as well. "What'd he offer you? Girls? Money? Hair?"

"I got my reasons."

Samuel made to walk past them but Dean stood in his way, stopping him.

"You gonna make a move, go ahead." Samuel challenged the older Winchester, seeing the barely pent up rage that made Dean's body shake.

"Or what?" Dean snapped.

"Or nothing. I'm not gonna do anything to you, Dean. You boys... you're my family. So the way I see it, you got two choices - Put a bullet in your grandfather or step aside."

Sam cocked his gun and lifted it to point at Samuel's head without a second thought. Dean reached up and pushed his hand down to get him to lower the gun.

"He sold us out." Sam said.

"I know." Dean agreed, looking back at him. "Let it go."

"Why?" Sam demanded, his eyebrows creasing together.

The older brother simply turned to look at Samuel.

"Get out of here."

The betrayal was clear in his voice. For all his talk about not trusting his maternal grandfather, the sting of his betrayal still stuck him deep because he was family. Samuel did exactly as he said after a moment, walking past them and out of the room. Elena's squeezed Dean's hand comfortingly, letting him know that she was still there.

"So, what now?" Sam questioned, looking to Dean for guidance as he'd been told to do.

"We can't work for Crowley." Dean sighed, all of the fight out of his voice.

"Are you sure about that?" Sam asked, looking up at him.

"I don't think you understand. Demons bone you every time." Dean said, staring at Sam.

"Oh, no, I get it. I do, believe me. Just running the math. Do we really have another choice?" the younger brother asked.

Elena glanced over at Dean, already knowing the answer to that particular question.

"We could stab him in his throat." Dean suggested.

"Dean, he has Sam's soul and killing him is not going to get it back." Elena said, hating that she was agreeing with Sam.

"I know you hate it, Dean. But it seems like we got to play ball, at least for the moment." Sam continued her statement with a glance at her.

"I have done some stupid things in my time, but punching a demon's clock?" Dean said, shaking his head.

"Look, it's just till we find another way." Elena said, looking up at him.

He looked back down at her.

"And then?"

"And then we track Crowley down and give that son of a bitch what's coming to him." Sam said for her.

Their eyes met, really for the first time since they figured out he had no soul, and she nodded, indicating that she agreed with that plan.

"You with us, Dean?" Sam asked, turning to his brother with a slightly exhilarated look.

* * *

Dean was in the bathroom washing up as Sam and Elena lounged around the motel room. They stopped for the night before they headed to Bobby's. There was an uncomfortable silence in the room that even Sam, in his clueless state, could sense was awkward.

"If there's something you want to say to me, just say it." he sighed, glancing over at her from where he was sitting at the table.

She looked back at him before sighing as well.

"I will do whatever it takes to get your soul back for you, so will Dean." Elena said.

"I know." He nodded with no doubt in his voice.

She stood and crossed to the room, sitting across from him at the table. Leaning forward slightly, she stared deep into his eyes.

"I still care about… no, I still love you, Sam. You're like an older brother to me and I've never really had that. Even with you being like this, I would never want to hurt you." she informed him.

"Well that's comforting. Because I still know you could kick my ass." Sam said.

Elena let out a slight laugh before glancing up at him.

"I said I don't want to hurt you, Sam. Not that I wouldn't. If you do another thing to put Dean's life in danger, I will kick your ass." She promised.

He didn't say anything, simply nodding with understanding in his eyes.

"You really love him a lot, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes." She said, standing up to walk to the bed.

"Good. I may not feel anything or have any instincts, but I know that he needs someone to take care of him right now. It's good that he has you." Sam said.

Elena glanced back at him, sensing something else in his tone, a hidden agenda behind his words. She couldn't quite place it but she was convinced that she would figure it out. Their eyes met and she saw his narrow slightly, almost in a challenging manner. She stared back, looking him up and down as he emanated 'threat' in her mind. It was almost like looking at an entirely different person. So much so that her entire being was screaming at her that he was not Sam and that she would have to take drastic measures with him at some point. She dreaded the day when that happened.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter is a werewolf chapter and Elena finds out something that will put Samuel on her hit list as well as a certain hybrid's radar. Cue teaming up of Elena and Klaus :). Review please!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, RHatch89, Nyssandria, CherrySin, diehardromantic, slayerdiaries, Commander Jack Sheapard, DrawingMyHeartOut, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, thestralboggart, chiwi, and the guest for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. I am so sorry it took me so long to update again. I got so thrown off my routine last week and I was working and stuff. I promise I will get back to updating more often after this. Thank you so much for being patient!**

**2. If anyone has any ideas or anything they'd like to see, let me know!**

**3. No outfits for this chapter, sorry.**

**4. I made a mistake in my calculations. Elena teaming up with Klaus isn't until the next chapter. I'm sorry for the confusion!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Elena glanced up at Dean where he was coming with food from the small burger joint that they stopped at on their way back from a case. It had been a week since their confrontation with Crowley and in that time they hadn't heard from Samuel or the demon. Everything was proceeding semi-normally and Elena and Dean were learning more and more how to deal with soulless Sam.

"I know, Bobby, but there's got to be another way. I don't know. Keep digging. I mean, if Crowley thinks we're just gonna…" she heard Dean saying into the phone as he walked to the table.

"Crowley thinks you're just gonna what, Dean?"

Sam's head snapped up and they saw that Crowley had materialized behind Dean. Elena glanced around to see that none of the other customers had seen the demon appear suddenly in broad daylight.

"Is that Bobby Singer? Give him a kiss for me." Crowley said, smirking.

"I'll call you back." Dean said to the phone before hanging up.

Crowley walked past him and to the table.

"Good news! I've got a job for you." he said, pulling out the chair next to Sam and sitting on it backwards.

Dean walked to the table with a disgusted look, sitting next to Elena. Tension filled the air but Crowley seemed unaffected by it. Elena was itching to grab her dagger and shove it into his chest but she doubted that it would harm him and there was also Sam's soul to think about. If Crowley did have it, they couldn't risk it.

"I'm gonna say this once. You can take your job and shove it up your ass." Dean snapped, glaring at the demon.

"Is that any way to talk to your boss?" Crowley asked, raising his eyebrow at the older brother.

Sam simply watched while Elena put her hand on Dean's thigh, trying to calm him down.

"You're not my boss, dickbag." He growled.

"Dean, Dean. Been through this. Quit clutching your pearls. You've been working for me for some time now. Sam here, longer." Crowley said, tilting his eyes towards the younger Winchester.

"We didn't know." Sam and Elena said at the same time.

"Like that makes a difference to you. You'd sell your brother for a dollar right now if you really needed a soda." Crowley said to Sam.

A pained look flashed across both Dean and Elena's faces as they knew that Crowley was speaking the truth.

"Look, I'm sending you…"

"No." Dean interrupted.

"Beg pardon?" Crowley said, taken aback slightly but also looking like he was expecting this resistance.

"I've done some shady stuff in my time, but I am not doing this. No."

"Ten quid says you will." Crowley said, smirking.

He reached out and touched the back of Sam's hand, who yelled out as it sizzled. They watched with wide eyes as a burn spreaded on his hand and he clutched at it, gasping in pain.

"You like pain, Sam? You like Hell?" the demon questioned. "You need to stop thinking of this as some kind of deal. This is a hostage situation, you arrogant little thug. I own your brother! Do you understand me?"

They watched him without saying a word. He snapped his fingers and the burn disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

"Come on, Dean, Elena, smile." Crowley urged at their dark glares.

"It's not that bad. Here's incentive… you bag me a live alpha, and I'll give you little Sammy's soul back, with a cherry on top."

"What, alpha vamp not good enough for you?" Sam questioned.

"Best mind where you poke your nose, if you want to keep it.

Before she knew it, her dagger was out and she holding it high in the air, fully intent on stabbing into his hand.

"Ah ah. I wouldn't if I were you." Crowley warned her.

"You might be some big bad King of Hell but I could still kick your ass into next week." She snapped, feeling anger and the urge to commit an act of violence churning deep inside of her.

There was also disgust at being within feet of the demon and she could almost taste the evilness that lived inside of him. It was different, somehow, than when she was around other demons. With them, she could smell the sulfur and sometimes she saw a hint of their true face behind their meatsuit's face. With Crowley, she didn't have any of that. She figured that it must have been because he was up higher on the demon food chain. After all, they'd never seen his eyes turn black.

"Tell me I'm wrong. Tell me you're stronger than me." she challenged him.

His eyes narrowed at her.

"You might be stronger but I hold better leverage than you. Tell me, do you want to have this version of Sam around forever? Because with a flick of my wrist, I could make sure that his soul is never seen again." He threatened, all of the sudden not so sarcastic and proud.

"Elena." Dean put his hand on her wrist and lowered it slowly, looking around at the people who were starting to stare at their table with wide, panicked eyes.

She sighed and slid the dagger back into the sheath.

"That's my girl. Your merry little hike up the food chain starts here."

Crowley put a newspaper down on the table for all of them to see. Unwillingly, the three all leaned forward.

"Businessman found dead in his car… chest ripped open… heart missing. Sounds like?" the demon said, glancing up at them.

"Werewolf." Sam said.

Elena furrowed her brow before remembering that there was not only two types of vampires, there was two types of werewolves.

"No, it's not a full moon." Dean argued.

"Werewolves turning on the full moon… so '09." Crowley scoffed.

"He's right. Samuel and I ganked one about six months back on the half-moon. Things have been out of whack for a while now, I guess." Sam explained.

"Yeah, I guess." Dean said, reaching down to hold her hand.

"So, it's settled then. You bag the howler, bring it home to papa. See you soon." He disappeared

Elena stood suddenly, lurching off of the table as she felt her stomach churning once again. When she saw a light glowing beneath her palms, she suddenly realized that it was the grace that was inside of her that was making her feel this way. She heard Dean and Sam following her but she ignored them, running into the woods that were behind the restaurant at full speed. She collapsed to her knees in a small clearing as her breaths came out in sharp gasps. She felt like something was twisting her interal organs around each other and setting them on fire.

"Elena?" Dean was kneeling next to her.

"I can't… my grace…" she choked out, clutching at her stomach.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's Crowley! It's his presence! It's this arrangment!" she cried, another wave of pain going through her body.

"What do you mean?"

"It's the angel parts in me, Dean! My grace always fighting against the very prospect of being in the same room as Crowley without smiting him. But this… it's wrong." She said, shaking her head as she clutched at him.

"I know." He sighed, putting his hands on her cheeks.

"I can't…" she sobbed, clutching at his wrists.

"Shh… it's not for long. Just until we find another way. I promise." Dean said, soothing her while stroking her cheeks.

Elena looked past him to see Sam there, watching them with that blank look on his face. It was worth it, worth the pain she would feel, if she could see her Sam again. The Sam that she loved and that loved her too.

"I'm okay." She said, taking deep breaths.

"You sure?" Dean asked, helping her up slowly.

She nodded.

"I just need some rest."

* * *

Elena was sleeping in the backseat while Dean was driving and Sam was in the front reading the information about the case.

"So, the vic's a real class act. Owned a bunch of slum-grade apartments. Couple houses, too." Sam read off.

"So this is it? This is… this is what you're gonna do?" Dean said, looking over at him.

"What am I doing?" Sam asked, confusion causing his eyebrows to knit together.

"Crowley. He's so far up our asses we're… we're… we're coughing sulfur, but you… you're just gonna work the case?" he demanded.

"Well, he's got us by the short and curlies. What about what you said to Elena? I mean, what else are we supposed to do?" Sam questioned with a shrug.

"I said that to Elena so that she would calm down but… I don't know. It's just… you know, man, I... I'm working for a demon now. I don't even know who you are. I just... I just need a second to adjust." Dean said, gripping the steering wheel.

"Look... this is a crap situation. I get it. But, Dean, I am still me… same melon, same memories. I-I still like the same music. I still think about Suzie Heizer." Sam said, looking over at him.

"Biology class Suzie Heizer?" Dean asked after a moment, glancing over at him.

Sam nodded.

"Can you blame me?"

Dean shrugged, making a 'not bad' face.

"Look, I know you don't trust me. And I can't take back what I did. But I'm going to prove it to you. I'm still your brother." Sam said with a confident look.

* * *

Elena, Dean, and Sam were walking up to a dock where someone was zipping up a body bag. A detecitve was standing over the body as two men lifted it onto a gurney.

"How you doing? Agents Holt and Wilson. This is Juliet Winston, our assistant." Dean introduced them as they all showed their ID's.

"Feds?" the detective asked, furrowing his brow at them.

"Yeah." Sam said simply, staring back unflinchingly.

"What are the Feds doing here?" the man questioned, putting his hands on his hips.

"Oh, we're specialists. They call us in to answer the questions of mouth-breathing dick monkeys." Sam said, his face unchanging.

They all looked at him with wide eyes, Elena fighting back a laugh at his blatant insult to the detective. Usually she would have laughed but she didn't want to encourage his behavior.

"So, you gonna walk us through this, or, uh..." Sam urged him, gesturing to the ground that was covered in blood.

"Dock worker. Guy on the morning shift found him… chest ripped wide open." the detective said.

"Same as the body in the car?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, second one in two days." He nodded.

"Internal organs missing on both vics? Like their hearts?" Sam questioned.

"Uh... looks like it, yeah. How'd you know?" the detective asked, sounding a little bit suspicious.

"So, this guy, he have any enemies?" Sam asked, ignoring the question.

"Yeah, plenty, but, uh, I don't think it was a wolf or possibly a cougar that had a beef with the guy. You do realize these were animal attacks?" He said, looking between them.

Dean and Elena glanced around the docks that didn't have a forest or even a field around them.

"An animal out here." Elena said skeptically.

"What, you think it came for the sailing?" Dean scoffed, raising an eyebrow at the man, who looked thoughtful at the question.

* * *

Elena's eyes flashed open and, for a moment, she forgot where she was and whose arms were wrapped around her chest and stomach. She turned over with a gasp and sighed with relief when she saw Dean's sleeping face inches from hers. She sighed, her dream still plaguing her mind, as she snuggled further into his chest and breathed in the smell of gunpowder, aftershave, and the leather of the Impala from his shirt.

"Mmm… you okay?" Dean mumbled, dropping his face to her hair and burying it into the soft locks.

"No, it's too early." She grumbled, tightening her grip around his waist and pulling herself in closer.

"Morning."

They both glanced around blearily to see Sam fully dressed and standing at the table with a tray of coffees.

The other bed was untouched.

"You didn't sleep. Cause you don't... sleep." Dean said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Right." Sam nodded.

"Yeah. That's not creepy at all." he sighed.

"Hey, I don't have to sleep if I don't want to. I just like sleep." She muttered, slapping his chest half-heartedly.

"Not like I can help it. So, you gonna just lay there staring at me..." Sam said, pulling on his suit jacket. "...or you want to hear what I dug up?"

Dean flicked his hand to tell him to go ahead as they both sat up.

"All right. So, we know that werewolves are basically id gone wild, right? I mean, whoever they hate, they kill when they wolf out. So, I've been playing connect the victims."

"And?" Dean said, staring at him sleepily.

"And I think I found a common denominator. So come on." he said, tossing their badges to them. "Get the lead out, huh?"

"Let us get dressed, Robocop." Dean said, shaking his head as they slid out of the bed and stumbled to the bathroom.

"At least soulless Sam got us coffee." Elena sighed as they pulled off their clothes.

"Ain't he a considerate little asshole?" Dean replied, shaking his head.

She laughed and pressed a kiss to his disgruntled pout.

* * *

They pulled up to a house and Elena and Dean climbed out of one side of the car while Sam climbed out of the other, discreetly sliding a gun in the back of his pants. Dean knocked on the door once they got to the house and a woman carrying a young boy opened it.

"Yes, can I help you?" she asked, glancing between them.

They all showed their ID's.

"Is Cal Garrigan at home? We've got a few questions we'd like to ask him." Sam said.

She smiled hesitantly.

"Yeah. Um, come in." she nodded, stepping aside for them to walk in.

She set the child down and handed him a toy truck as they stood around. A German Shepherd was lying on a dog bed in the kitchen.

:Honey, um, why don't you go play in your room for a little while, okay?" she said to her son before clearing the toys that were spread across the kitchen table.

"Excuse the mess. Please sit." She said, gesturing to it.

They all sat down and she remained standing.

"Um... can I get you guys anything?" she questioned, looking like she had no idea what to do with this situation.

"No, thank you." Elena said, smiling politely.

"Um, so Cal is your boyfriend?" Dean asked.

"That's right." she nodded.

"And where is he?" he said, looking around.

"Uh, sleeping, I think." She said.

They all stared at her for a moment.

"You mind telling him up and at 'em? He's got some guests." Dean requested.

"Yeah. Yeah, of course." She said, looking hesitant as she began to leave the room.

Before she left, a man walked in clearing his throat and holding a hand to his head. Elena assumed that it must have been Cal.

"Cal..." she began.

The dog suddenly growled and barked once as he looked at Cal.

"Lucky, shh!" the woman berated the dog softly.

The animal growled once again before laying his head down.

"These are Agents..."

"Holt and Wilson. And Miss Winston. Morning... ish." Dean said, looking the guy up and down.

He looked absolutely wrecked and they could all smell the alcohol radiating from his pores.

"Hey. What's this?" Cal said, pouring himself some coffee.

"You out late last night, Cal?" Dean questioned.

"Just, uh, you know, a couple beers with friends." he shrugged.

"How many's a couple?" Elena asked, doubting that he was telling the truth.

His eyes flashed to hers defensively.

"I don't know. Three, four tops." He answered.

"If all you had was beer, then how come you're sweating vodka? And looks to me like you slept in those clothes. Am I right?" Sam asked, looking like he believed Cal as much as Elena and Dean did.

"I don't know. I… I guess." He stammered.

"So what you're saying is, you got blind drunk, you blacked out. Something tells me this isn't the first time." Dean guessed.

The man simply stared at them, stunned that they all seemed to know this.

"So, Cal, truthfully, who knows what you've really been up to at night?" Sam said.

Cal's eyes glanced between them.

"Look, what's this about?" he asked, wanting to get the subject off of his nightly activities.

"We're investigating the death of Ronald Garrigan." Elena said, holding up a picture of the deceased man.

"My brother?" Cal said.

He and the woman looked at each other and she shrugged, obviously at a loss.

"Sorry for your loss." Dean said solemnly.

"Yeah, I thought that was some kind of animal attack." Cal said, a hint of derision in his tone.

"No love lost between the two of you, huh?" Sam asked, picking up on it as well.

"Look, we had our differences, I guess. You love your brother, of course, but... Ron had a lot of problems. He was, uh, volatile." Cal informed them.

"Last time he was here, you called the cops?" Elena questioned.

"Yeah, look, he came in here all messed up, and he was yelling. He shoved Mandy. So, yeah, I called the cops. I don't see how that has to do with…"

"Your landlord was found dead this week. Were you aware of that?" Sam interrupted him.

"Saw it in the papers. Why?" Cal asked.

"Well, you two were pretty far behind on your rent, right? He had sent eviction papers?"

"I… I'm sorry. That was an animal attack." Mandy cut in, confusion evident in her tone.

"Funny enough, yeah… both of 'em were." Sam confirmed.

"So, great, great. Yeah. What in the hell do you think I had to do with 'em?" Cal demanded.

Dean and Elena stood at the same time, Sam following suit.

"Just following procedure. Had to ask. You two have a good day." Dean nodded at them before they turned to leave the house.

"So, Cal's a prince." Sam scoffed, rolling his eyes as they walked towards the Impala.

"Yeah, doesn't even know where he was last night." Dean agreed.

"Bag him now?" the younger brother asked once they reached the car.

"No. We make sure." Dean said, opening the door for Elena.

"Really?" Sam said with disbelief.

"Before we hand him over to a lifetime of demon rape? Yeah, really." Dean said, staring at Sam for a moment before they got in the car and drove away.

* * *

Elena watched with disbelief as they pulled up to a place with two garage doors. The doors were open to reveal Cal and three other men in a room with a bar, a pool table, and a jukebox. Cal was already drinking amber liquid out of a glass.

"Boy, Cal just doesn't know when to quit." Sam said, watching as even he was surprised by the man's behavior.

"Three scuzzy bars, one scuzzy strip club, a chili-dog joint, seven or eight nightcaps, and now... scotches in the library. I'm getting cirrhosis just watching this." Dean said and Elena shuddered as she thought of the state that the man's liver might have been in.

"Other than that, we got squat." Dean pointed out.

"Let's just see." Sam said and they all sat back to watch Cal and another man began to play pool as music blasted through the jukebox.

Hours later, they were still there. Elena was leaning forward and massaging Dean's shoulders gently as they watched. She glanced to the left and saw light peeking out over the horizon.

"Sun's up." She sighed, leaning forward and putting her chin on Dean's shoulder.

Two of the men were leaving the garage. The others, including Cal, were still sitting around the table.

"This guy's still on two legs. In theory. He ain't wolfing out." Dean said, glancing over at Sam.

"Well, not tonight, anyway." Sam replied.

"Let's head back. We can re-attack this in a couple hours." Dean suggested, starting the Impala and pulling away.

* * *

"Catch you later, man." Cal said, waving as he walked off.

He walked to his pick-up truck and fumbled with his keys. When he heard a sound, he looked to the right to see a dog sitting there looking at him.

"Lucky. What are you doing?" he said, recognizing the animal.

Lucky growled and launched at him.

"No!" he yelled as he was knocked face-first into the ground.

He screamed loudly as he was dragged backwards. The sound of tearing flesh filled the air and blood splattered on the side of the pick-up. Suddenly, the dog was standing on two legs and was very much human. The man looked in the mirror at his bloodsoaked body, tilting his head to the side. Then he looked down at Cal, whose chest was ripped open.

* * *

They all watched as Cal's body was zipped into a body bag.

"I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that it's not Cal." Dean decided.

"Masterful deduction, Sherlock." Sam said sarcastically as they turned to walk off.

Dean shot him a look as Elena shook her head.

"I mean, a werewolf attack in daylight? This whole thing is just weird." Dean said.

"Dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria. So, you know this means that we're down to one suspect, right?" Sam said.

They both turned to face him as they approached the car.

"I know." Dean sighed.

Elena knew why there was hesitation in his voice. She like it as much as he did.

"I mean, Mandy is right at the deep end of the vic pool. Can you do it?" Sam asked.

"Do what?" Elena asked, staring up at him.

"Shove her in the trunk, serve her up to Crowley." Sam said.

Elena bit her lip, glancing over at Dean.

"Yeah, Sam, I can do it."

* * *

They were driving down the street towards Mandy's house when they saw her on the street talking to another woman and walking her dog. Elena elected to remain in the car as Dean and Sam approached her. She was feeling a little sick again but it wasn't for the same reason. This time it was because they were possibly going to serve up a woman who had no idea what she was doing to Crowley for him to torture her endlessly until he decided to kill her.

"Ma'am." Dean said as they approached her.

"Agents. What are you doing here?" Mandy asked, looking between them.

"Nobody called you?" Dean asked, taken aback.

"Called me about what?"

* * *

Dean convinced Elena to come in. He was more comfortable with her breaking the news to Mandy rather than him and especially rather than Sam, who would probably tell her with condescention clear in his voice. Mandy was sitting at the table with her hand over her mouth, her eyes shining slightly.

"I'm sorry. I just can't believe it." she choked out, shaking her head and wiping her cheeks.

"I'm really very sorry." Elena said, reaching out and taking her hand.

"Ma'am, I know this isn't the best time, but we'd like you to come with us." Sam said.

Elena shot him a look telling him to back down but he didn't get the message, simply staring back at her.

"Why? You think I have something to do with this? With Cal?" Mandy said, her eyes wide with panic.

"Of course not." Elena shook her head, her voice soft and soothing as oppossed to Sam's which was hardened and unforgiving.

"We just got a few questions… i's and t's, mostly." Dean said.

Elena fought the urge to glare at him too. Couldn't they give the poor woman a moment?

"I, uh... could we do it later?" she asked.

Elena opened her mouth to answer but Sam beat her to it.

"I'm afraid not." He said.

Mandy looked at him with a pleading expression and he stared back unmoved.

"Oh. Uh… uh, my kid has the flu, um, and he was up all night, so…" Elena looked at her, tilting her head slightly.

"Well, is there a neighbor or a friend who can watch him while you're gone?" Sam suggested.

"I'm sorry. You said your boy was up all night?" Elena asked.

"Uh, yeah." Mandy nodded.

"Were you with him all night?" Dean inquired, catching onto Elena's line of thinking.

"Um… uh… well, I had, um, half an hour of sleep, maybe." Mandy stammered out, taken by surprise at their questioning.

"Can I talk to your son?" Elena asked, feeling a sense of relief.

"Why?" Mandy asked, confused.

"Yeah, what difference does that make, Miss Winston?"

Elena turned a burning gaze on him, causing his mouth to snap shut.

"Trust me. It's important." she answered through gritted teeth before turning to Mandy.

"Please?" she asked in a kinder tone.

Dean and Sam remained in the kitchen while Mandy led Elena to her child's bedroom.

"Jamie, honey? There's a nice lady who wants to talk to you, okay?" Mandy said to the pale face that was peeking out over the covers.

"Hi, Jamie. My name is Juliet." Elena said, smiling as she walked forward.

She knelt beside the small bed and glanced back at Mandy.

"It's best if you're not here. Could you wait in the hall or the kitchen with Agent Holt? I'll only be a few minutes, I promise." Elena said honestly with an open face.

"Y-yeah." Mandy stammered before walking out.

She looked back at the little boy who was staring at her.

"Your mom tells me that you're sick." She said, reaching out to stroke his forehead.

He nodded.

"I've got a fever and I cough a lot. Like this." he coughed a few times to show her.

"Well, that's not very fun. I'm guessing you didn't get a lot of sleep last night then, huh?" Elena asked.

Jamie shook his head.

"I'm sleepy but my body hurts so I can't sleep." He explained.

"Ugh. I am so sorry. Your mommy stayed up all night with you too?" she asked.

"Yep. Only she went to sleep early this morning. She thought that I was asleep but I was watching cartoons." Jamie said.

"Did you see your mom sleeping? In her bed or on the couch?" Elena said, pulling the blankets up higher around his chin.

"Yep. She was in her bed and Lucky was there with her." he nodded confidently.

She smiled at him.

"Thank you for talking to me, Jamie. You've been a big help." Elena said.

"Are you bringing Cal back? Mommy was sad this morning cause Cal wasn't here." Jamie said softly.

"No, Jamie, I'm afraid I'm not bringing Cal back." she said sympathetically.

"Good, I didn't like Cal. He was always smelly. I like Lucky and I like Mommy. That's all we need." He said in a deciding tone.

"Well good." She said, smiling as she stood up to walk out of the room.

"Bye Juliet." Jamie said, poking his hand out and waving at her.

Elena laughed as she paused at the door.

"Bye Jamie." She replied, waving back.

* * *

"It wasn't her." Elena said confidently as they stood around the Impala.

"You don't know that." Sam replied.

"She's got an alibi." Dean argued.

"She's lying." he shrugged.

"I told you what Jamie said, Sam. She's not lying." Elena explained.

"Fine. She still had time to wolf out. The last werewolf was in bed, with me, and she wolfed out." Sam said.

"Don't make this personal. Look, all I'm saying is that between this and the daylight attacks, something's not adding up." Dean pointed out. "We're not just gonna hand her over to Crowley until we figure out what. You understand?"

Sam sighed, shaking his head.

"Okay." They both stared at him skeptically and he recognized it. "Okay. I understand. How about you two go check out Cal's crime scene, see if we're missing anything. I'll come back and keep an eye on Mandy."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. No, how 'bout you go and we'll stay here?" Dean said, laughing humorlessly at Sam's attempt.

"Dean, I still know how to do my job. I'm just gonna watch her. That's all. Trust me." Sam said, climbing into the car.

"Uh-huh." Dean said skeptically.

* * *

Sam was across the street leaning against one of the slides in the playground. He was holding binoculars and looking through the window into the living room. Mandy and Jamie had gone to bed about an hour ago but that didn't mean that nothing would happen. He saw the dog, Lucky, trot into the living room and look around. Then, suddenly, a man was standing there. Sam's eyes widened as he saw the man pull on clothing that probably belonged to Cal before his death. He quickly backed away as the man walked out and across the street. Hidden in the shadows, Sam watched as he jumped the fence and walked across the field that was behind the playground.

Another, much larger man walked out of the trees. Sam watched, his gun raised to take the shot, as they argued, the larger man gesturing widely with his arms and anger clear on his face. Lucky was talking back defensively before he nodded. The large man disappeared in the trees again and Lucky turned to walk back the way he came. Suddenly he stopped as he reached the fence and Sam watched with confused eyes to see him sniffing the air. The shifter's head turned all of the sudden and he was looking right at him. He stared at him for a moment and Sam stared back. He turned and took off running towards the trees.

Sam cursed aloud and broke out into a run as well, following Lucky into the woods. After running for a minute or so, he found a pile of clothes in the path ahead of him. He continued running and suddenly heard a loud screech and a thump. When he ran out of the woods onto a road, he saw a man loading the German Shepherd into his station wagon, blood in the dog's fur.

"It's okay." The man said, putting him into the car.

Sam shoved his gun into the back of his pants and ran as fast as he could.

"It'll be okay, boy." He said as he closed the door. "We gotta find a vet."

The man climbed into the driver's seat of the car, where a woman was in the passenger's seat, and took off.

"Wait, wait, wait! Wait, wait! Mister! Hey, mister, wait! That's my dog!" Sam yelled as he ran into the street.

They didn't notice him and they disappeared around the corner.

"That's my dog." He sighed, slowing to a stop.

* * *

Elena glanced up from where she was kneeling next to the large bloodstain on the ground at the sound of Dean's phone ringing. There were a few stray animal hairs but, of course, she would have no way of figuring out who they were from just by looking at them.

"Hey." Dean said into the phone once he picked it up.

"Hey, man, it's me." Sam said over the speakerphone.

"Well, we got bupkis here." Dean informed him as Elena stood.

"I definitely got something. It ain't a werewolf, for one." Sam replied.

Both of their eyebrows raised at the information.

"What is it?" Elena questioned, walking to stand next to Dean.

"Skinwalker." Sam said.

"A skinwalker? As in..." Dean trailed off.

"As in, the family dog seriously needs a neuter." Sam said, sounding frustrated.

"Wow. I haven't of a skinwalker in years." Dean said, his eyebrows knitting together as he and Elena walked back to the Impala. "I'm actually a little rusty on the profile."

"You and me both. Uh, I just got the low down from Bobby. They can change anywhere, anytime. Skinwalkers infect you with a single bite. Otherwise, they're basically a werewolf cousin… silver will drop 'em, they chow hearts like sausages." Sam explained.

"So what happened? Did you catch him?" Elena asked.

"Not exactly. But I have some idea where he might be." Sam said.

* * *

Elena walked behind Sam and Dean into the back room of the animal hospital. Dean was carrying a bag and he knelt in front of the cage containing the German Shepherd as she and Sam hung back a little bit.

"Hiya, Lucky. Bad dog." Dean said, smirking.

Elena rolled her eyes and put her hands in her jacket pockets.

"First things first." Dean held up his gun.

He pulled the magazine out and showed it to the dog. Elena glanced around to make sure no one was going to see him threatening a dog with bullets.

"You see this? This is silver." Dean informed Lucky. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Lucky let out a little whine as he put the clip back into the gun.

"Okay, time to go. Now, we can either do this the easy way…" Dean trailed off, holding up a pair of jeans. "Hmm?"

Then he pulled out a chain collar with a leash attached.

"Or the hard way."

Sam let out a laugh and Elena and Dean both turned to look at him with raised eyebrows, wondering what could possibly be funny.

"What? Soul or not, that's funny." He pointed out, shrugging.

Lucky let out a bark at them.

* * *

Elena was sitting on the bed now and Sam and Dean were in front of Lucky, who was now in human form. The younger brother was sitting backwards on a chair while the older was pacing.

"Well, I got to tell you, Lucky, you got us stumped. I mean, why shack up with the family? Is it a kinky thing? Do you like to play with your food?"

The man remain quiet, refusing to speak.

"Roll over, Lucky. Speak." Sam urged him.

Elena fought back the urge to laugh because what Sam was saying was funny, but she really didn't want to encourage him. When she pressed her lips together and inhaled sharply, Dean looked over at her with a 'don't you dare' look.

"Go to hell." Lucky snapped quietly.

"Already been. Didn't agree with me. So, look..." Sam stood and picked up Elena's silver dagger from the desk. "... how about I take this silver knife, and start carving some dog until you behave?"

"You do what you got to do." The man shrugged.

Sam began to approach him with a darkened gaze but Dean stopped him.

"Hang on, Sam." he said and Sam backed away after a moment.

"Listen, you don't have to tell me why you're with the family. I get it." Dean said, squatting in front of Lucky.

"Oh, you do, do you?" the shifter scoffed skeptically.

"You killed every threat that came near them. You care about them, in your own whack-a-doodle kind of way. It's obvious. What I want to know is, who was that guy you were kibitzing with? He a skinwalker, too?" he questioned.

"Look, I can't say anything." Lucky sighed, looking away from Dean.

"But if you don't, then you're gonna put Mandy and Jamie in danger. And sooner or later, all this shit is gonna come for them." Elena threw out, staring at Lucky.

Dean sighed, standing up.

"Now look… we don't give a rat's ass about you. We want to help them. That's our angle. That's it." Dean informed him.

Lucky stared between them for a moment before shooting a glare at Sam and sighing.

"Yeah, that guy, he's a... whatever it is I am. And he's not the only one." He said.

"How many are you?" Sam asked, glad to finally be getting some answers.

"About 30. We were all… we were kind of recruited." Lucky said.

"Recruited?" Elena questioned.

"Yeah. Me, I was living on the streets. They found me. They told me one small bite, I'd be strong, I'd be fast." He said.

"Sniffing people's butts? Yeah, that's a real step up." Dean scoffed, sitting on the bed next to Elena.

"Well, it was for me." Lucky fired back.

"Where is this little Scooby gang of yours?" Sam asked.

"Everywhere. We're out there finding families, and once they take us in, we lay low." He said.

"Lay low? What the hell's that mean?" Dean demanded, not liking the sound of that at all.

"Well, we're waiting for the word." Lucky said.

"What word?" Dean asked.

"Once we're settled, we get the signal... and we all turn on our families. We change them, all in one night. 30 becomes 150." He explained.

"God, you're a sleeper cell." Dean said, looking disgusted as Elena felt.

"Yeah, well, that's one way to say it." Lucky shrugged.

"So you're waiting for word from who? Who organized you?" Elena asked, a grimace on her face.

"There's a pack leader."

"Your Alpha?" Sam breathed, leaning forward.

"What's an Alpha?" Lucky asked, confused.

"The first skinwalker, the strongest." Sam said.

"Well, he's plenty strong, but, no, I… I don't think so. I'm pretty sure there's guys like him in other towns. We're not the only pack out there." the man said.

"Fantastic. Then you can help us stop him." Dean said, standing.

"Oh, no, I can't. No." Lucky said, shaking his head.

"Yes, you can." Dean corrected him.

"No, you guys don't get it. No one can. These guys who turned me… they're ruthless." Lucky said, his eyes wide.

Sam let out a whistle and held up a red ball. He threw it.

"Sam, not helping." Dean snapped, glaring at him.

"Fetch this, dick." Lucky said and Elena knew that he was flipping Sam off from his tied hands behind his back.

"Listen to me." Dean said, leaning down to get in Lucky's face.

"What are you gonna do to that family, really? You gonna put your jaws around that little boy's throat? Clamp down, listen to him cry for his mom? 'Cause I'm gonna guess that these are the only people who in your pathetic life have ever showed you any kindness. So it's either that... or you can help us stop it." he said.

* * *

"So... How are we supposed to get near something that can smell us a hundred yards off?" Sam asked.

They were all standing underneath a bridge a few blocks away from the warehouse that Lucky told them about. Dean was looking through the trunk.

"We don't." he said, opening a case of rifles and pulling out the one that was best for sharpshooting.

"The pack leader. We're taking him down?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. Got a better idea?" Dean said, turning to him with a questioning look.

"No, I... Crowley's not gonna be too happy about that." Sam shrugged.

Elena scoffed, shaking her head. It was times like this that Sam's true soullessness would show.

"Who gives a rat's ass? We let that thing live one second, and it sends out that psychic dog whistle and…" Dean made a 'blowing up' hand motion. "… phew!"

"On the other hand, it could lead us to an Alpha. Then Crowley would give me my soul back." Sam reminded them.

"Are you kidding? 150 people turned into monsters. That's what you want?" Elena demanded, staring at him.

"No. Of course not. I... I'm just asking." Sam said, shrugging.

"All right, you know what? That's it." Dean snapped, sounding angry.

"What?" Sam said, alarmed slightly as Dean slammed the case shut and pulled it out of the car.

"You say you're 'just folks', yeah? That… that you like baseball and apple pie or whatever. But truth is, I don't know what you are 'cause you're not Sam." he said, glaring at him.

"Dean, come on." Sam sighed.

"I mean, it's your gigantor body and… and maybe your brain, but it's not you. So just... stop pretending. Do us all a favor."

Dean picked up the rifle case and turned to walk off with Elena following close behind them. Neither of them looked back at Sam, who picked up a bag and closed the trunk before walking after them.

* * *

"He looks nervous, right?" Sam asked as they sat on the roof.

Dean had the rifle ready and Sam and Elena were holding handguns loaded up with silver bullets as well just in case.

"Wouldn't you be?" Elena asked, knowing the answer to that was probably 'no'.

"I'd double-cross us. I mean, he's got to realize that's his best bet, if he wants to keep breathing." Sam shrugged.

"Nah, he'll go through with it." Dean said confidently.

"You mean 'cause he loves that family?" Sam asked with skepticism.

Dean glanced over at him.

"Yeah." He said simply.

"I'd double-cross us." Sam repeated.

"Thanks, Dexter. That's reassuring." The older brother sighed, turning back.

"Just making conversation." the younger shrugged.

A vehicle pulled up and Dean sat a little straighter.

"Here we go." he said.

Sam and Elena both looked through binoculars over the wall of the roof. Three men climbed out of the video and the garage door to the warehouse opened, three more men walking out. They all surrounded Lucky.

"That big guy, the driver… that's the guy Lucky met in the park." Sam pointed out.

Dean looked through the telescope on the rifle and saw a bald, shorter man getting out and he was instantly surrounded.

"And there's El Jefe." He said.

"Take him out." Sam urged him.

"It's not clean. We got one shot at this… literally." Dean reminded him.

The boss walked over to Lucky and they all watched as he shook his head then glanced back at the car. Their attention was grabbed by Mandy and Jamie, who was being held by his mother, climbing out of the car looking terrified.

"Take the shot." Sam said.

"I'm trying! She's in the way." Dean snapped as Mandy was purposefully put beside the boss.

"Take it anyway!" Sam snapped.

Elena and Dean both looked at Sam with horrified looks. He just looked back blankly.

Dean looked through the rifle and saw the bald man put an arm around Lucky and lead him inside with Mandy and Jamie on the other side being shoved into the warehouse. With everyone inside, one of the grunts slid the garage door closed.

"So, plan B?" Sam asked.

"We've got one?" Dean and Elena questioned at the same time.

* * *

"Please, whatever you want. Just please let my son go." Mandy pleaded as they were shoved into the gathered circle of men.

The bald man whispered to the large man and the large one walked over to Lucky.

"Look, man, there's nothing I can do. The boss is pissed. These murders that you've been doing? You didn't ask for permission! Now you're gonna screw up the whole damn plan. I tried to warn you." he said.

"I know. I'm sorry." Lucky said desperately.

"There… there's been a mistake. T-This has got nothing to do with us." Mandy begged.

"It has everything to do with you, sister." The large man informed her.

"Hey." Lucky hissed at him, not wanting them to get hurt.

"So, you with us or not?" the other man demanded.

"Yes, of course I am." Lucky said, his eyes wide.

"Fine. Prove it. Turn them. Now. Both of 'em, while we watch, Or I'll kill you all." The large man said.

"Oh, my..." Mandy whimpered.

The large man suddenly sniffed.

"What is that?" he asked.

Sam suddenly stepped out from behind a stack of boxes and shot the boss. Mandy gasped as a bullet flew by her from Dean's rifle and connected with another shifter. Elena flew out from behind another box and shot a shifter that was advancing on Sam. They continued shooting as Mandy took cover. Two of the men ran off and Sam ran after them. Elena remained behind to protect Mandy and Jamie.

"Mommy!" she heard Jamie cry out.

"It's okay." Mandy assured him, clutching him to her.

Elena looked to see Lucky run up to them.

"Mandy! Come on, come on." he said, trying to pull her in another direction.

"Who are you? I don't even know you!" Mandy demanded.

"Yes, you do. Trust me, I'm trying to help. Come on, come on!"

Elena heard Sam yelling for Dean and she looked back to see Lucky shoving Mandy and Jamie into a small room.

"Bolt it! Bolt it!" he yelled at her.

She glanced up at Dean and nodded at him before taking off after Sam to help him. She found a pile of clothes and knew that whatever was after Sam was no longer in a human form. She snuck quietly around the corner to see a Doberman stalking up on Sam, who had no idea that it was behind him. She immediately shot it and Sam whirled around, shocked at her sudden appearance.

"You're protecting them? After what I did for you? I gave you your life back!" they heard the large man yelling at Lucky.

"Keep looking for any of them left." Elena said before she backtracked back to where Lucky was.

She found Lucky changed into a German Shepherd before the man.

"Lucky?!" Mandy looked horrified from within the office.

"So you think this is gonna be a dogfight?" the large man chuckled.

He took out a handgun and pointed it at Lucky.

"I got a better idea."

He shot the gun off and Lucky yelped, collapsing to the floor. Elena raised her gun to shoot as the large man advanced on Lucky.

"Silver bullet, Lucky." He said.

Before Elena could pull the trigger, a loud shot rang out and the man fell to the ground dead. She looked up to see Dean nodded as he pulled the rifle out of the grate where he had it stuck through. Elena walked forward slowly, kneeling next to Lucky who was whimpering with a bullet wound in his leg. She glanced up to see Sam advancing on them, his gun raised as if he would shoot Lucky.

"Stop." She snapped, causing him to falter in his path.

Then she reached down and concentrated, pulling the bullet out. Lucky let out a cry as the bullet collapsed to the ground.

"It's okay, I'm gonna fix you." she assured him, concentrating on healing him.

The door opened and she looked up to see Mandy standing there with wide eyes, holding Jamie in her arms. Elena sighed and concentrated again, healing him. Dean ran up just as she finished, the light from her hand fading.

"Elena?" he said.

"Get them out of here. I'll make sure he's okay." She said, glancing up at him.

"Let's get home, Mandy." He said, ushering her out with Sam following.

* * *

Elena and Dean glanced up from where their heads were tilted together and their hands were clasped. They were sitting at a picnic table in a park and Sam was walking to them with fast food.

"I'll never look at a dog the same. Makes you wonder, though, huh?" Dean said as they sat up a little straighter and Sam passed out the food.

"What?" Sam said.

"How many packs are out there? What if they're all just waiting for the signal, you know?" Dean said, unwrapping his burger.

Elena sighed and glanced back at the river that was behind them as she stole a fry from Dean. He simply smiled over at her, offering her another.

"So... I was thinking. You were right." Sam said, looking vaguely disgusted at their cute behavior.

"About?" Dean asked, focusing his attention back on him.

"I'm not your brother. I'm not Sam." he said.

"Okay." Dean said as he and Elena stared at Sam, wondering where he was going with this.

"Um, all that blah, blah, blah, about being the old me? Bullshit. I couldn't care less." He said.

"Is this supposed to make me feel better?" Dean questioned.

"You wanted the real me. This is it. I don't care about anything. I don't even really care about you." Sam glanced between Dean and Elena, referring to them both. "Except that... I need your help. And you're clearly not gonna stick around for much longer unless I give it to you straight, so... I've done a lot worse than you know. I've killed innocent people in the line of duty. But I'm pretty sure it's not something the old me could've done. And maybe I should feel guilty. But I don't."

Dean and Elena stared at him, the blatant truth he was telling them sending stabs of pain through both of them.

"Sam, get to the punch line." Dean snapped, ready for this conversation to be over.

"I don't know if how I am is better or worse. It's different. You get the job done, and nothing really hurts. That's not the worst thing. But I've been thinking. And it was... it was kinda harder. But there are also things about it I remember that I... Let's just say I think I should probably go back to being him." Sam explained.

"That's very interesting. It's a step." Dean acknowledged.

"So?" Sam questioned, wondering where they went from there.

"We do what we got to do. And we get my brother back." the older hunter said.

At that moment, Elena's phone rang. She pulled it out to see a number that she didn't expect on the screen.

"Hello?" she said, her brow furrowing.

Dean and Sam looked over at her.

"Klaus? What are you doing calli…" she cut off, her irritated glare suddenly turning to an alarmed expression.

"What do you mean, Rebekah, Elijah, and Finn are missing?" she said, her eyes widening as she stared at Dean with panic.

* * *

**Author's Note: I am so sorry once again that this took so long! I hope you liked it! Please review! Next chapter is the one with the fairies and yes, Klaus is going to be in the next chapter as well as another Mystic Falls character. **

**PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, RHatch89, chiwi, CherrySin, Nyssandria, slayerdiaries, Hollywood17, DrawingMyHeartOut, Commander Jack Sheapard, xxPaige23xx, RippahGoneWolf, Nicole0203, diehardromantic, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, imusic247, and the guest for reviewing!**

**Just for the purposed of all that is happening in this story, there aren't going to be extra hybrids in this series. Sorry but there's already so much to contend with that that'll just add too much to it and I'll go crazy trying to keep up with even more. Sorry but that's just a decision I had to make.**

**To the guest, don't worry. John Winchester and the rest of the ghosts aren't forgotten and their absense will be explained.**

**To Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Elena and Klaus are going to have badass moments in the next chapter. **

**To Commander Jack Sheapard, yes Katherine will be showing up sometime soon.**

**To DrawingMyHeartOut, no I am absolutely not buying the Crowley is just a demon theory. I never really did but the developments in the recent episodes of Supernatural have convinced me even more.**

**To Nyssandria, it's not that Elena can't kick Crowley's ass, it's that she won't. They are under the impression that he has Sam's soul and so they aren't going to attack him just in case it makes them lose it.**

**A few things:**

**1. 200 reviews already! You're amazing! Love you all! Send me any questions or suggestions if you want!**

**2. THERE IS A NOTE AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER THAT I WANT YOU TO READ ABOUT A NEW STORY! PLEASE READ IT!**

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**4. So good news on this chapter. I didn't really plan on it going like this but Klaus is teaming up with Elena in more than one way in this chapter. He's going to be helping out with the case. And by helping out, I mean adding a bunch of sass and basically being Klaus-like.**

* * *

"So they just… disappeared?" Elena said, leaning forward where she was sitting on the bed.

Klaus was hovering by the doorway looking around the room with a sneer.

"What is this place?" he asked, looking as though he felt dirty just standing in the room.

"It's a motel, Klaus." she sighed, wanting to get him back on topic.

"It's disgusting." He replied.

Elena stared at him for a moment, feeling as though she was dealing with a child throwing a fit.

"Can we just talk about your siblings? What happened?" she sighed, frustrated with dealing with the hybrid.

"Elijah and Rebekah went on a trip to New York a few days ago and they never came back and they won't answer their phones. Finn was already gone off to Boston and we haven't heard from him in over two weeks. Caroline informed me that you know some hunters that have been gathering supernatural beings for a demon so I thought you might know something about this." he said, his eyes glinting with anger.

Elena stared at him for a moment before sighing heavily and sliding off of the bed.

"Samuel wouldn't be… stupid enough." she muttered more to herself than to him.

Would he really go after the Original vampires? Knowing that Elena knew them? Was it possible that Crowley had the three vampires?

"Are you positive?" Klaus asked.

She glanced back at him before pulling her phone out.

"Bobby, is there any way you can do some research?" She asked once the hunter answered the phone.

* * *

"I'm here because I believe that Elwood Indiana has become a center of extraterrestrial activity. My name is Wayne Whitaker, Jr., and I have personally recorded dozens of eyewitness accounts, strange lights in the sky, mysterious presences attempting contact. We are right in the middle of what we in the field like to call a UFO flap, and I am as happy as a pig in shoes."

"There was this light. And then Patrick just vanished. What happened to him? Something took him! I know it!"

"It's all happening, you know? I mean, these entities have come to help push humanity to the next stage."

"Since this whole damned circus has blown into town, no one seems to realize we got four missing persons cases wide open. My friends lost loved ones. I can guarantee you that this has nothing to do with UFO's, little green men. Nothing extraterrestrial whatsoever."

Dean walked away from the sheriff, who was the last person they talked to.

"This is just a bunch of crazy." He muttered.

He looked to the right just in time to see Elena walking up to them with Klaus trailing behind her, his hands shoved in his jacket pockets and a moody look on his face.

"What are we doing here? In this town?" Klaus asked with a grimace.

"We…" Elena said as they reached them, gesturing between her, Dean, and Sam. "… are working on a case."

The hybrid suddenly grabbed her arm and whirled her around to look at him. Dean started forward with a glare, his feelings on Klaus still on the negative side of things. Sam simply watched with an expressionless face.

"You said we were working on finding my siblings." He snapped as Elena waved Dean off.

"Yeah, Klaus, working on it. If I'm right and Crowley has them, it's not as easy as making one phone call and finding a location on him. He is the King of Hell. It's going to take time and while that's going on, we're going to work a case." She shot back, yanking her arm out of his grip.

"And if you don't like it, you can go back to the hotel and sit there while we wait for news."

Klaus glared back at her for a moment before sighing.

"Fine." He said simply, indicating that he would remain with her. "Maybe I could be of help on this case."

"Like we trust you." Sam scoffed.

"Well you're not doing much better on the trust thing than him so I'd keep your mouth shut." Dean fired at him with a raised eyebrow.

Klaus looked between them with an interested look as he wondered what he'd missed. If the matching looks of distrust that Elena and her hunter were wearing were of any indication, he'd missed quite a bit.

"We have one more person who volunteered to talk to us." Dean said, putting his hand on Elena's back.

The middle-aged woman was waiting for them with a pleasant smile.

"Miss…" Sam began.

"Marion." She interrupted.

He squinted at her before nodding.

"Marion… can you tell us about what's been going on in the town?" Sam asked in a bored tone that the lady didn't seem to pick up on.

"Well some people around here seem to think that it's UFO's." she said, glancing around with a shake of her head.

Elena and Klaus both looked at Dean and Sam with an 'are you serious' look at the mention of UFO's. Dean shook his head and indicated that he would explain later.

"You don't think it's UFO's." Dean asked her.

"Of course it's not UFO's. It's fairies." She said with a grin.

"Fairies. Okay. Well, thank you for your input." Dean said politely, suddenly convinced that this lady was missing a few of her marbles.

He tugged on Elena's sleeve for them to walk away and Klaus moved to follow them but Sam remained where he was.

"What? Flying saucers not insane enough for you?" he demanded, looking the woman up and down.

"What newspaper did you say you worked for?" Marion asked, taken aback by his hostile tone.

Elena and Dean tried to pull Sam off but he wasn't budging.

"Okay, if you want to add glitter to that glue you're sniffing, that's fine, but don't dump your whackadoo all over us. We'd rather not step in it." he said, making Elena fight back a laugh.

It was exactly what she'd been thinking and it was hard not to support him saying it out loud.

"Okay, we're, we're done." Dean said, giving her a look that said she better not laugh.

"The only thing you're missing is a couple dozen cats, sister." Sam said to the woman.

Elena finally reached out and tugged him away with her added strength.

"It's a blood sugar thing. My apologies." Dean said.

Dean gave him an incredulous look as Elena bit her lip and Klaus looked at Sam trying to figure out what was different about him.

"What?" Sam said as they crossed the street towards the Impala.

"What? You gotta ask?" Dean said with disbelief.

Sam shrugged with confusion on his face.

"Right, yes, you do have to ask." He sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry, but this is all a big joke, right, and we're not actually taking this UFO crap seriously?" Sam said.

They came to a stop beside the car, Elena and Klaus watching as they talked.

"No, man. ET is made of rubber. Everybody knows that. But there are four legitimate vanishings in this town. Something's going on." Dean said.

"Maybe it's the boogeyman." Klaus said, smirking.

Dean shot a glare at him before turning back to his brother.

"And Sam? By the way, it's not the lady's fault that she took the brown acid." He said.

"Yeah! So?" Sam said, not understanding.

"Empathy, man. Empathy. I mean, the old Sam would have given her some, some wussified, dew-eyed crap." Dean said.

"Old Sam?" Klaus asked.

Elena shot him a look to tell him to shut it.

"Old Sam had a soul… was a soul. Whatever." Sam reminded Dean.

"Right! Yes, and, and… but you don't… aren't. Whatever." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Wait… what?" the hybrid said.

"Sam doesn't have a soul." Elena and Dean said at the same time, tired of Klaus interrupting.

"Right." Sam nodded.

"Right." Dean repeated and Sam stared at him, not understanding what he was getting at. "You don't care."

"Well…" Sam said, at a loss for what to say.

"You have to care!" Elena broke in, recognizing Dean's 'I'm about to explode' face.

"About what, exactly?" Sam asked.

"About everything, man! About being human at least." Dean sighed.

"Oh don't listen to them. This is fascinating. You are much different. You know, it almost reminds me of…"

"No one cares!" Elena and Dean snapped at him.

"Look, Dean. You obviously care. A lot. And that's great. But I can't care about what… I can't care about it, you know? What do you want me to do, fake it?" Sam asked, looking as though he was really trying to understand what Dean wanted.

"Yes. Absolutely. Fake it. Fake it till you make it." Dean said, giving up on explaining this to Sam.

"What happened to you wanting me to be all honest?" the younger hunter questioned.

"Hey, you wanna be a real boy, Pinnochio, you gotta act the part." The older brother replied, thumping his fist on the trunk of the car.

"I was faking it Dean! Ever since we got back on the road together, I was picking every freaking word. It's exhausting." Sam sighed.

"Okay. All Right. But until we get you back on the soul train, we'll be your conscience, okay?" Dean said, gesturing between him and Elena.

"So you're saying you'll be my… Jiminy Crickets." Sam said, looking between them.

"Shut up. But yeah, you freaking puppet. That's exactly what I'm saying." Dean said, moving to get into the car.

"Wait, what does it remind you of?" Elena asked, turning to Klaus and wondering if he might actually have anything worthwhile to add to the conversation.

"Oh, you want me to speak now? All right. It reminds me of a vampire with their humanity switched off. I've had experience in that, you know. The ripper in Stefan." He said with a smirk.

Elena glared at him as she thought about it.

"I'm not some bloodsucking freak." Sam snapped, rolling his eyes as he walked to the passenger side and climbed in.

Dean remained outside of the car, looking at Elena.

"Can you tell me more?" she asked Klaus, tilting her head to the side slightly.

* * *

Elena and Klaus remained outside to talk as Sam and Dean walked into the watch store.

"Mr. Brennan?" Dean asked the man who was sitting a table inspecting a pocketwatch underneath a magnifying glass.

"Mmm?" he asked, glancing up at them.

"We're with The Mirror. We would like to ask you…" Sam began.

"What?" Mr. Brennan interrupted them, standing up. "Is this about Patrick? Patrick's gone."

"Missing. Right. Yes, that's what we want to talk to you about." Dean nodded.

"Now, your son was the first to disappear." Sam said.

"First to be taken." Brennan muttered as he stared down.

"Taken." Sam said, looking at the man.

He stared down at his hands for a moment before looking up at them.

"Get out! Out!" he suddenly yelled.

"Mr. Brennan, who do you believe took your son?" Dean said, backing away from him.

"You people can't help me. My boy is never coming back." Brennan spat at them.

"You sound awfully sure." Sam said, suspicion in his voice.

"Excuse me?" the man asked, staring back at him with a taken aback expression.

"Like you know something you're not talking about." Sam said, squinting back at him.

* * *

"There isn't much to tell. You saw Stefan as he was. That's about the worst that an emotionless vampire can get." Klaus said as they sat on a bench.

"I didn't see him a lot though. You've been around plenty of vampires, Klaus. Tell me how to… I don't know… deal with it?" she shrugged.

"I only said that it reminded me of a switched off vampire, Elena. Not that it was the same thing. You can't switch his soul back on." Klaus reminded her.

"But you were with Stefan for a long time during his ripper phase in the twenties. He wasn't just killing and killing. He had focus, right? He… cared about things. How do we get Sam to care about things?" she asked.

It was entirely strange to Elena that she was going to Klaus for help but he was the best chance they had to keep Sam under control until they could figure out a way to get his soul back.

* * *

"Okay. All right." Dean said, getting in between Sam and Mr. Brennan.

The man stared at them with a pained gaze.

"You know what they say. 72 hours. After that, the odds of finding a missing person drop to nothing, right?" he said.

"Well, every case is different." Dean said.

"It's been weeks." The man said brokenly, turning away from them to sit once again.

"All right." Dean sighed, realizing that they weren't going to get anything else out of him. "Listen. Call us if anything comes to mind."

He handed him a business card and turned to leave with Sam. Once they were gone, Brennan turned to look at a table that looked like it was empty.

"Is that all right?" he asked, all trace of devastation gone from his voice.

* * *

"What do you think?" Sam asked as they walked out.

Elena straightened up and stood. Klaus grew silent as he stood as well.

"I think he's hiding something." Dean said, looking questioningly between Elena and the vampire.

"Why don't you stay with dumb and dumber here and watch Watchmaker and see what happens when the sun goes down, and I'll go check out the crop circles." He said to Elena.

Klaus' eyes narrowed dangerously as Sam simply rolled his eyes.

"You're leaving me with them?" she asked, unhappy about this turn of events.

"I don't trust either of them on their own and you've got the super strength." He said.

"Fine." She sighed.

"Okey dokey." Sam said, turning around.

"Hey! Do not engage with, maim or in any way kill Brennan." He said to both Sam and Klaus, who looked taken aback at being told what to do from a human.

"In fact, I don't want you making any judgment calls whatsoever. Anything happens, talk to Elena or call me." Dean said to Sam.

"You know, Jiminy, I was on my own for a whole year. I did fine without you." Sam scoffed.

"Yeah. I don't want to know your definition of fine." Dean said with a roll of his eyes before he kissed Elena's forehead and walked off.

* * *

Elena sighed heavily as they sat at a table in the bar. Mr. Brennan was at the table drinking his fourth beer. Klaus was next to her with a glass of scotch and Sam was just finishing a beer as she sipped at a margarita.

"Ugh. We've been here for a long time. I'm going to get us new drinks. Call Dean and tell him that there's nothing here. You…" she pointed at Klaus.

"… watch him." she gestured to Sam.

"And you…" she looked at Sam and pointed at Klaus. "… watch him."

The two males stared at each other for a moment as she walked off. Sam pulled out his phone and dialed Dean's number.

"What?" Dean sighed when he answered.

"The only thing this guy is up to is alcoholism." Sam said into the phone.

"Good." Dean said simply, the rustling sound indicating that he was still in the corn fields looking around.

"You know, maybe we should go talk to him again. I mean, you're the one who said he's hiding something." Sam suggested, watching Elena order drinks at the bar.

"Shh! Shh!" Dean suddenly said.

"What? You see something?" Sam said, sitting up straighter, his interest peaked. "Dean, what's up?"

"Hang on a second." The other brother said and there was a moment of silence.

" Holy… UFO! UFO!" Dean shouted into the phone so loudly that Klaus could hear it without his superior hybrid hearing.

"Whoa! Dude, stop yelling. You're breaking up. I didn't catch that last part." Sam said in an unbothered voice.

Klaus simply raised his eyebrow.

"Close encounter! Close encounter!" Dean yelled even louder, sounding as though he was running.

"Close encounter! What kind? First? Second?" Sam asked, causing Klaus to chuckle.

"They're after me!"

"Third kind already? You better run, man. I think the fourth kind is a butt thing." Sam said.

"Empathy, Sam! Empathy!" Dean growled out.

"They still after you?" he asked, ignoring his brother's comment.

He heard the sound off the phone falling to the ground and distantly heard Dean still yelling.

"Come on!" the older brother shouted.

"Dean? Are you there? What happened? Dean?" Sam said.

There was no answer and the call suddenly ended. Sam shrugged and hung it up just as Elena ran up to the table. She set the drinks down with a questioning look.

"Something's wrong. What happened?" she asked, her eyes wide with panic as her 'Dean's in trouble' alarm was going off.

"Hmm?" Sam questioned.

Elena rolled her eyes before sighing and leaning forward.

"What did Dean say?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, I think he was abducted." Sam said, reaching for his beer that was beside her hand.

Her eyes widened and her mouth formed an 'o' shape. Then her hand reached out and slapped his hand before he could get to the beer.

"And you didn't think it was important to come get me?" she demanded, her eyes glaring into his.

Sam shrugged and reached for the beer again. Elena looked at Klaus with an unbelieving look to see that he looked amused.

"All right. Come on." she snapped, grabbing Sam's arm and hauling him out of the bar.

She dragged them into a back alley and closed her eyes as she touched both of them. They appeared in the corn fields right next to a still running but abandoned Impala.

"You… go to the UFO camp. See if anyone has any information that we can use to get Dean back if he was really abducted. We'll stay here and check things out." She said to Sam.

"You mean you're cutting me loose?" Sam asked, surprised.

"I don't really have much of a choice, do I? You keep trying to tell us you're a good hunter well… now's your time to shine." She snapped before turning to walk off with Klaus.

She heard Sam climb into the Impala and drive away.

"You sure that's a good idea?" Klaus asked, smirking away as he did.

"No." she sighed.

* * *

"So, they're real. UFO's." Sam said as he approached Wayne Whitaker, the so-called UFO expert.

The man glanced up from where he was standing behind a table full of pamphlets with a smile.

"Like I said before, son, the truth is out there." Wayne said.

"Okay, you're the expert. How do I get them?" Sam asked.

"Come again?" he said, looking at Sam with a strange look.

"You hunt ET's, right? I need to know how to get them." Sam nodded.

"You and me both." Wayne sighed, handing him a pile of papers.

Sam rifled through them with an unimpressed look.

"This is it?" he asked, looking back up at the 'expert'.

"Well, I'd say that 30 years of eyewitness accounts speak for themselves as incontrovertible proof…"

"Yeah, right. My brother was abducted so I'm pretty good on the whole proof part." Sam snapped, interrupting him.

"Your brother was abducted?" The hippie girl, Sparrow, that they'd talked to earlier said, appearing by his side.

"Yeah." Sam said, glancing over at her before looking back at Wayne.

"Oh my God." She breathed, sounding like she felt terrible for him.

"It's fine. I mean, I've had time to adjust." He said, nodding at her.

"Did it happen when you were kids?" Sparrow asked.

"No, like, half an hour ago." Both she and Wayne looked at Sam with strange looks.

"So, you've been hunting UFO's for over three decades and you basically have no concrete data and zero workable leads." he said, looking back at Wayne.

"Well, I…" the man began to defend himself.

"Have you considered the possibility that you suck at hunting UFO's?" Sam asked blatantly before turning to walk away, holding the stack of papers.

Sparrow hurried to catch up with him.

"I'd like to help. If I can." She said, catching his arm.

Sam turned and looked her up and down before smiling at her.

* * *

Elena sighed as she bent down and found Dean's phone finally. They'd been touring the corn fields for two hours now with nothing.

"That's not a good sign." Klaus said, looking at the cracked screen.

"I don't need your commentary." She said, shoving it into her pocket.

"Yet I willingly give it." he replied with a grin.

She simply turned and glared at him. Suddenly they heard a shouting noise and the sounds of gunfire very close to them. Elena recognized his presence and ran forward.

"Dean!" she yelled, running up to him where he was staring around the clearing with a panicked look.

His knife was in one hand with his gun in the other.

"Elena?" he said, staring at her.

"You're okay." She sighed with relief, throwing herself into his arms.

"What… I… I don't…" he stammered out.

She drew away and put her hands on his cheeks. She knew that he was in no shape to answer questions judging by his pale appearance.

"Let's get back to the motel. You can get some rest." she said.

Dean simply nodded but she heard a noise of protest behind her.

"Must we?" Klaus grumbled.

"Yes." She snapped over her shoulder, reaching out and touching his arm before closing her eyes and transporting them back to the motel room.

They heard a noise and Elena reached out to turn on the light. Two gasps filled the room as naked Sam and a girl who was lying on top of him, also naked, turned to face them, interrupting their kissing. Luckily, they were covered by the covers, mostly.

"Dean!" Sam said, shocked by their appearance.

Klaus simply smirked as Elena stared at them with shock.

"What the hell?" Dean demanded, finally finding his voice.

"Oh that's Dean! Sam, they brought your brother back." the girl said with a grin, laying her head on Sam's chest.

Elena only had to grit her teeth together and narrow her eyes for the redhead to widen her eyes and suddenly move from her position. They all turned their backs, Klaus with some forceful persuasion from Elena, as the girl gathered her clothing.

"Okay. It's all right, Sam. I so totally understand that you need time as a family." She said, smiling as she walked to the door that Elena was holding open for her once she was dressed.

"But it's just… what were they like?" she asked, turning to face Dean who was clutching Elena's hand tightly.

Elena fought the urge to throw the female out with her bare hands.

"They were grabby, incandescent douche bags." Dean snapped.

Elena raised her hand and pointed.

"Out. Now." She growled.

"Too soon. Okay." The girl said, smiling as she walked out.

Elena slammed the door closed and Dean buried his face her in hair as Klaus sat down in a chair, folding his arms over his stomach with a smirk as if he was watching a television drama.

"You're upset." Sam acknowledged once he pulled on his t-shirt.

Dean lifted his head and glared at Sam.

"I was abducted. And you were banging Patchouli." He snapped, walking forward and pulling Elena along with him.

"I didn't think she smelled that bad." Sam muttered.

"I was abducted by aliens!" he yelled.

"I was looking into it. We all were." Sam said defensively.

"Looking into it! I was gone for, like, an hour." Dean shouted.

Elena's brow furrowed.

"An hour…" Sam said confusedly, pulling his phone out.

"Dean, I think your watch is off. You've been gone all night." Elena said.

"What are you talking about? No I haven't." he said, glancing back at her.

Sam lifted his phone and showed him the clock.

"Four a.m.?"

"Yeah!" Sam nodded.

Then his eyes widened.

"UFO time slip. That actually falls in line with a lot of abduction stories." He said, turning to walk into the kitchenette.

"Falls in line…" Dean scoffed, turning to sit on the bed with Elena.

Both of them almost sat on the nearest bed but remembered that Sam had previously been naked in that bed and they moved to the other bed as Klaus simply looked on with amusement.

"Yeah." Sam said.

"Nothing's falling in line." Dean snapped as they sat.

"Here. Drink. Good." Sam said, handing him a glass of whiskey.

Dean drank it all in one gulp.

"Thank you." he muttered.

"Yeah." Sam said, refilling it and handing it to him.

Then he sat on the other bed and leaned forward, looking into Dean's eyes.

"Now. Come on. Talk to me. What happened?"

"Well, uh, there was this… God help me, there was this bright white light!" Dean said, sounding traumatized even as he spoke.

"It's okay." Sam reached out to pat his leg and Dean stared at him incredulously.

Elena rolled her eyes at Sam's attempts to be understanding, or as Dean would say, a real boy".

"Safe room." he said.

Dean glanced down at his hand and back up at Sam. He got the message and moved it, sitting back.

"And then suddenly, I was, uh, I was in a different place. And there were these beings, and they were too bright to look at, but I could feel them pulling me towards this sort of table…" Dean said unwillingly and Elena couldn't help the grimace that formed on her face.

"Probing table!" Sam said with realization.

"God! Don't say that out loud!" Dean snapped.

"Not a word." Elena said to Klaus before he could say anything.

"I wasn't going to!" he said defensively yet with a smirk.

Elena simply gave him a disbelieving look before turning back to Dean.

"So what did you do?" she asked in a soft voice, soothingly rubbing the back of his neck.

Dean sighed and leaned into her touch.

"I went crazy. I started hacking and slashing and firing. They actually seemed surprised. I don't think anybody's ever done that before." Dean chuckled, moving to stand up.

Elena let him go, remaining sitting on the bed.

"Yeah. I had a close encounter, and I won." He said proudly, drinking the rest of his whiskey.

"You should take a shower." Sam said with a careful expression.

"I should take a shower." Dean agreed, turning to walk into the bathroom. "I'm gonna, I'm gonna take a shower now."

He turned to the bathroom and walked in. Then he turned back and gave Elena a pleading look. She sighed and stood up, walking into the bathroom with him. As she turned to close the door, she saw the matching raised eyebrows on Sam and Klaus' faces.

"Shut up. And stay here." She said, pointing at Sam before closing the door.

"You're not hurt, are you?" she asked, helping him pull of his jacket.

He shook his head, sighing.

"How did everything go? Sorry to leave you behind with tweedledee and tweedledum in there." he said, looking down at her.

Elena laughed and shook her head.

"Only you would apologize for leaving me behind with two assholes when you were abducted by aliens." She sighed.

Dean simply shrugged as he pulled off his shirt.

"I'm just glad you're all right. Let's get you cleaned up." She said.

Instead of turning on the shower, she let the bathtub fill with warm water. Then she climbed in behind Dean and let him lean back against her chest as she ran her fingers over his chest and through his hair.

"Mmm… this is nice. Thank you." he murmured, his eyes closed as he relaxed against her.

"Anytime." She murmured into his ear, kissing the area just behind it and making him sigh contentedly.

"They didn't get me on the… probing table, you know." He said as if he wanted to make sure that she knew that nothing kinky happened.

Elena laughed lightly.

"I know."

* * *

"So, on top of all the demons and the angels and the ghosts and the skinwalkers and the freaking vampires…" Dean said, gesturing to Klaus who simply stared back. "… it turns out that there's…" he shook his head.

They were sitting in a diner eating breakfast.

"… so if aliens are actually real, what's next? Hobbits? Seriously."

Elena glanced up just in time to see Sam nod at the pretty waitress who passed by their table.

"You just gave her the silent how ya doin." Dean said, glaring at him.

"What?" Sam said, trying and failing to sound innocent.

"Our reality's collapsing around us, and you're trying to pick up our waitress?" he snapped.

"Yeah. Okay. Look. Brings up a question. So, say you got a soul and you're on a case, and your brother gets abducted by aliens…"

Elena sighed and leaned back.

"Yeah, then you do everything you can to get him back." Dean said simply, tired of having this conversation with Sam.

"Right! You do, but, what about when there are no more leads for the night? Are you supposed to just sit there in the dark and suffer, even when there's nothing that can be done at that moment?" Sam said.

"Yes!" Dean snapped.

"What?" Sam said, not expecting for that to be Dean's answer.

"Yes, you sit in the dark and feel the loss." Dean stressed.

"Absolutely! But couldn't I just do all that and have sex with the hippie chick?" Sam asked with wide eyes as if he was really trying to understand.

"No!" Dean and Elena sighed at the same time.

"It'd be in the dark." Sam said as a last ditch effort.

"No you couldn't because you would be suffering, and you can't just turn that off for the night." Dean said as the waitress walked up with the ticket.

"Thanks, guys." She said, grinning at Sam.

He didn't spare her a second look this time, too engrossed in the conversation.

"Thank y…"

"Why not?" Sam interrupted Dean.

"Because if you had a soul, your soul wouldn't let you." Elena said.

"So you're saying having a soul equals suffering." Sam said.

"Yes, that's exactly what we're saying." Dean said.

"So you're saying suffering is a good thing."

"I'm saying it's the only game in town."

Sam stared at them, still looking like he didn't understand.

"Look at it this way, mate…" Klaus said, leaning forward.

"Great." Elena and Dean muttered, wondering how much worse Klaus could make this.

"It's not just about suffering. I don't particularly like my siblings at all. In fact, they piss me off more than anything else in this world. Yet right now, I'm looking for them along with you lot, bringing suffering upon myself by being in your very presence, because my siblings are my siblings no matter how angry they make me. No matter how many times they may stab me in the back, they're still my family and I still… put up with things for them." The hybrid said.

They all stared at him for a moment.

"I think that's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard you say." Elena said, regarding him with a little bit of respect for that.

"Okay!" Sam said, done with that conversation for now. "So how do we deal with the little green men?"

"Research. We've got about a century of UFO lore to catch up on, and there's no time for…" Dean glanced around and stoppped talking. "What's up with that guy?"

They all looked in the direction he was looking.

"Who?" Sam asked, looking confused.

"The guy by the window giving me the stink eye." He said, referring to the man he saw standing outside with the red cap on.

"You mean the cop?" Elena asked, confused because the cop wasn't even looking at him.

"No, not the cop! The guy! He's right…" he glanced at Sam before looking back at the window. "… oh now he's gone!"

"Who's gone?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow at Dean.

"Can we please just get out of here before I hit you?" Dean snapped.

"Okay! Geez." Sam said as they all stood up.

* * *

"Library's closing up soon. We're almost done." Elena said over the phone.

Her, Sam, and Klaus had all gone to the library for a few hours, leaving Dean at the motel to rest up a little bit. He was doing research on the Internet for information on UFO's. They'd left Sam's phone with him since his was smashed up.

"You find anything?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. Way too much. Everyone on the planet believes in UFO's, and they will not stop writing books about it." Sam said from the other end.

"Yeah, well at least books have punctuation. All right, I'll keep digging we'll see what we have when you get back." he said.

"Okay, love you." Elena said.

"Love you too." Dean said before hanging up.

Suddenly the radio switched on and the lights began to flicker. A bright light lit up outside and Dean stumbled out of his chair.

"Oh no. Not again." He said, his eyes wide.

The door slammed open and a bright ball of light flew into the room. Dean glanced at the bed where his gun was laying. As he darted forward to grab it, the ball of light flew into his path, stopping him short. He inched forward, squinting through the bright light.

"Nipples?" he questioned just before the bright ball flew forward and smacked him in the face.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean growled out.

He continued to dodge the thing as it tried to hit him over and over again. Finally, he smacked it and it slammed into the microwave. He slammed the door shut and turned the microwave on, watching as he held the door shut and the thing hit it over and over again. After a few moments, there was a screech and the ball of light went out as the creature blew up. Dean laughed maniacally, happy to have defeated these things twice.

* * *

"See what?" Sam asked as they peered into the microwave.

Him and Klaus were standing on one side while Dean and Elena were on the other. Elena's nose was wrinkled at the smell of burnt flesh was in the air.

"See what? See the blood. See all the blechh." Dean said, gesturing at the microwave.

"Sorry, man. I'm not seeing it." Sam said.

"Me neither." Klaus and Elena said.

"You don't see the ick? It's right there." Dean said.

"Okay, let's go with you see it and we don't." Sam said, gesturing between him, Elena, and Klaus. "What the hell was it?"

Dean backed away, closing the microwave.

"It was a, a little… naked lady, okay?" he said, looking ashamed.

"It was a what?" Elena asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"It was a… it was a little, glowing, hot naked lady. With nipples." A pout formed on Dean's face and Elena felt that he needed comfort again. "And she hit me."

"I'm not supposed to laugh, right?" Sam said.

It was too late for Klaus as his mouth was forming a wide grin at the thought. Dean slammed his hand on the counter and stared up at Sam.

"Right. Okay. Sure." He nodded.

"So, shot in the dark here, but did this little lady have wings?" Elena asked, looking up at Dean.

"What the hell made you say that?" he said, looking alarmed.

"She did, didn't she?" Sam said, his eyes widening hopefully.

"Yeah, but how did, how'd y…"

"One of the fringier theories we came across." Elena said as Sam pulled out some papers they'd copied from books.

"It's actually what crazy crystal lady was yammering about. What if these abductions have nothing to do with UFO's?" Sam said, hanidng them to Dean.

"What?" Dean asked with confusion as Sam ran to the laptop and typed in an address.

"Okay, say these encounters have been going on for centuries, not with extraterrestrials but with ultra-terrestrials. People nowadays say space aliens or whatever, but they used to call them…" he turned it around to show a picture to them.

"Smurfs." Dean guessed.

"Fairies." Sam corrected him.

"Fairies? Come on!" Dean said, shaking his head as the threw the papers down.

"Dean, there's a straight line between ET's and fairies. Glowing lights, abductions. It's all the same UFO stuff, just under a different skin." Sam said.

"You seriously think that the secret with UFO's is…"

"Hey, you're the one who pizza-rolled Tinkerbell. I'm just doing the math. But this is good. This is a lead." Sam said defensively.

"A lead where?" Dean demanded.

* * *

Elena looked across the table at Dean and Sam, both of whom looked like they were at different levels of being disgruntled. They'd left Klaus at home at his request. He claimed that he was waiting for something and none of them had the energy to question it.

"Fairies. Sprites and spriggens. Bogarts and brownies. The little people have many names." Marion said as she approached table with the tea in tiny little cups.

"Well, that's, uh, that's her. That's the little…" he cut himself off.

"Ooh." the woman said with wide eyes, looking thrilled.

"Anyway, I, uh, I get that tinkerbells are fairies, but what about the tiny Santa Claus and the troll and the…" Dean said, squinting at one of the many figurines that were scattered around the tiny apartment that the woman lived in.

"That's a garden gnome, and that's a large goblin, and…"

"But they're all fairies?" Elena asked, interrupting her.

"Yes. Faery comes in many shapes and sizes. Magical, mischievous beings from the realm next door." Marion explained.

"The fairy realm." Dean confirmed.

"Mm-hm." She nodded, sipping from her cup.

"So it's like another dimension?" Sam questioned, awkwardly holding the tiny cup in his large hands.

"Another reality! Yes. Only people who have been there and returned to our world can see the Faery here."

"Right. Umm, why are the fairies abducting people?" Dean questioned.

"Mmm. There is much theory and little fact. We know they only take firstborn sons, just like Rumplestiltskin did. Personally, I think they're taken to Avalon to service Oberon, the King of the Faery."

Elena could see the question in Sam's eyes before he asked it but she did nothing to stop it.

"Dean? Did you service Oberon, King of the Fairies?" he asked, looking over at his older brother.

Dean glared at him for a moment.

"Marion. Um. Let's say fairies are real, okay? What can we do about them?" he asked.

"Sorry?" Marion said innocently.

"How can we…" he searched for a way to ask her how they would get rid of them.

"… interact with them." She finished for him.

"Yes, yes. Forcefully interact." Dean nodded.

"Well, if you want to win a faery's favor, leave a bowl of fresh cream. They love cream." She said, smiling happily.

"Okay! And, and, more forcefully?" he questioned.

"Ohhh. All Faery hate iron, and the dark Faery burn when touched with silver. What else. Oh! You can spill sugar or salt in front of them. No matter how powerful, the Faery must stoop to count each grain." She said.

Elena exchanged a wary glance with Dean, wondering if this lady really was sniffing the crazy glue or if this was all real.

"Well, alrighty. That's… wow! A lot to absorb. Thank you." Dean said, moving to get up.

"Oh, oh, stay! Finish your tea." She urged them, forcing them to all remain where they were.

"I gotta say I, I love the feel… it's uhh, it's…" Dean stammered as he looked around, trying to find a nice thing to say about the place.

Usually that wouldn't be his job but Sam's nice words were lost with his soul, apparently.

"It's like Sedona, Arizona crapped in here." Sam said, proving the point.

"Cute-a-riffic! Is what it is." Dean said over him, trying to please Marion.

She laughed and looked pleased at his words.

"Cute-a-riffic." He repeated.

"You have bigger cups?" Sam asked, trying to take a sip of the tea so that they could get out of there.

* * *

"God, is it on me? I feel like I've got the crazy on me." Dean shuddered as they walked towards the Impala.

"No. You did sit in some glitter, though." Elena said as she walked behind them.

Dean turned and smirked at her, understanding that by her words, she was staring at his ass as they walked. She simply grinned and winked back at him.

"Makes me want to believe in UFO's again." He said when he turned back.

"Doesn't really give us the next move, I grant you that. We can always put the call out to Bobby." Sam said

"Hey." Elena tugged Dean's sleeve and pointed at a man buying a bunch of boxes of cream.

"I'll be damned. Isn't that the watch guy?" Dean said, staring at him.

"Huh. They love cream." Sam said interestedly.

* * *

They followed Mr. Brennan to his store and sat outside for a moment to see him take the cream in and then leave again, this time on foot.

"All right you two stick with half and half, and I'm going to check out his store. And no hippie chicks!" Dean snapped, pointing at Sam.

Sam slid over into the driver's seat and drove off as Elena climbed into the front seat. They followed Mr. Brennan back to the same bar and sighed as they sat at the same table as before. Elena's phone suddenly rang.

"Yeah?" she said.

"Freaking full of Keeblers over here. Just full of 'em." Dean said, sounding disgusted.

"What?" she questioned, confused.

"It's like the story with the shoe guy and all the elves. Hey, you think Brennan made a deal with a bunch of fairies?" he asked.

"Let us get back to you." she said, suddenly feeling disgusted herself as all of the pieces fell into place.

"Come on." she said, pulling Sam up.

"But we're not supposed to engage with, maim or in any way kill Brennan." He said, repeating Dean's words.

Elena looked back at him with a raised eyebrow as they approached the man. She sat on one side and Sam on the other.

"So, Mr. Brennan. Hello." Elena said.

"Leave me alone." He grumbled into his drink.

"I just wanted to mention how beautiful your work is." She said defensively.

"What?" he said, finally glancing up at them.

"The watches. Just stunning." Elena said, smiling at him with a flash of anger in her eyes.

"What I can't figure out is how one man can put out that much product. I mean, hell! If I didn't know better, I'd say you have a bunch of elves working for you." Sam said from the others side of him, causing Brennan to look at him. "Except I do know better, and you have a bunch of elves working for you."

"You're insane." Brennan scoffed.

"So, tell me. How does a father decide to trade his son for a bunch of watches? I mean, I assume you have a soul so what's your excuse?" Sam questioned.

"You don't understand. It wasn't like that." he said, suddenly dropping the innocent act.

"Then how was it?" Elena demanded.

* * *

Dean was walking along the sidewalk when he saw the man from the diner staring at him from across the street. Slowly and carefully, he snuck away, wondering why this man seemed to be following him.

* * *

"I supported my family for thirty years making those watches. It's the only thing I know how to do." Brennan held up his shaking hand. "Parkinson's. Was losing my hands. I was losing everything. My grandmother, she always used to say that they were real. She told me all of these stories when I was a kid about how to summon them, how to get favors from them."

"So you learned how to work a spell." Sam said.

"I mean, honestly, I doubted it would even work. I was just desperate. But she left me this book, so I did the ceremony in my back office two months ago, and this man appeared and said he was a leprechaun." Brennan explained.

"A leprechaun." Elena said doubtfully, looking at Sam who shrugged.

"I asked him just to cure my hands, but he said he would do even better. He would make me more successful than I had ever been. He told me he'd bring a crew of workers, that I could save my business, save my name." he said.

"In exchange for?" Sam asked.

"He just wanted a place for them to rest, to take of the fruit and fat of the land. I said yes. I wasn't thinking." He sighed, looking down at his hands.

"And the fruit and the fat was?" Elena asked, knowing the answer already.

"My firstborn. Not just mine. There's been others. They're not stopping. They're not going to stop." Brennan said.

"There's gotta be a way to reverse the spell." Sam said, glancing at Elena.

"There is. But the book is in a safe in my shop. They won't let me near it. It's been a nightmare."

"You can see the fairies?" Elena asked.

"Yes." He nodded.

* * *

He was walking down the sidewalk quickly when he turned to see red cap guy following him. He sped up and darted into an alleyway. He pressed himself against the wall and readied himself when he heard footsteps. Then Dean threw himself around the corner and tackled the person.

"Wha…? Help! Help!" the thing underneath him yelled.

It took him a moment to realize that he'd tackled a midget.

"Little fairy! What do you want, you fairy? Huh? Huh? Fairy!" he growled, wrestling with the thing.

"Daddy!" A little girl screamed and Dean looked up to see a family staring down at him with panic.

"Oh God no." he mumbled, letting go of the man and scrambling away. "Haha! I'm just kidding!"

* * *

They turned the corner as Elena dialed Dean's number trying to get ahold of him. He wasn't answering, which worried her.

"Don't worry, Brennan. We can do this. We're gonna cover you while you reverse the ritual." Sam said with assurance to the man, earning Elena's approval at his caring tone even if it was faked.

Suddenly they saw flashing police lights and through the crowd, they saw Dean being led to a cop car in handcuffs.

"Dean!" Elena said, rushing forward with panic.

"Hey dude! What happened?" Sam yelled.

"Elena! Sam…. hey!" Dean said, his eyes wide as the door was opened.

"What are we supposed to do?" Sam demanded.

"Fight the fairies. You fight those fairies." He said as he was shoved into the back and the door was slammed shut.

They watched helplessly as he turned and looked at them through the bak window.

"Fight the fairies!"

* * *

Elena sighed heavily, rushing into the hotel room.

"What's wrong?" Klaus asked from where he was sitting.

"Dean got arrested." She said, rifling through her clothing.

It took her a moment to realize that they weren't alone. She turned to see Kol sitting at the table with him.

"Hello darling." He said with a grin.

"No time." she said quickly, running into the bathroom to change.

"What are you going to do? Where's the soulless hunter?" Klaus called through the door.

"He's off trying to get rid of the fairies. I need to get Dean out of jail before they see that Dean Winchester is supposed to be dead." She hurried back out and dug through her bag again.

"That's a change." Kol said, looking at her sudden outfit change.

"I'm going in as a lawyer, I have to look… lawyer-y." she said, pulling her hair halfway back into a clip.

"Need us?" Klaus asked.

Elena glanced at them, taken by surprise. So far, Klaus' 'help' had only been to make snarky remarks. Now he was officially offering to help and she had no idea how to take it.

"We have no idea how many of these fairies are around. Could you go to the watchmaker's store and make sure Sam is all right?" she asked warily.

He nodded and patted Kol, telling him to stand up as well as they walked out of the motel room.

* * *

"I'm just trying to understand exactly what kind of hate crime this even was." the sheriff said as he paced in front of the cell.

"It wasn't a hate crime." Dean sighed from where he was sitting on the cot.

"I mean, if this gentleman were a full-sized homosexual, would that be okay with you?" the man asked.

Dean stared at him, confused by his line of questioning.

"I don't hate any size person, or any size… gay… guy." He stammered.

"He's not gay as it happens. But! He is the district attorney for Tipton County."

Dean groaned, realizing that he accidentally tackled the wrong person.

"Runs a tight ship, tell you what." The man said.

"I'd say he's done so well for himself, considering his…" the sheriff looked at Dean with a raised eyebrow. "… considering these tough economic times."

"Son, you are all kinds of messed up." The sheriff scoffed before walking off.

* * *

"Are they here?" Sam asked as they snuck into the back.

"Yeah, but it's all right. Greenhats like tequila." Mr. Brennan said, sneaking over to the safe to pull out the spell book.

"lich sha-hayt. Uh keeya shun, augus small un sorashun, augus phooetek en shia, en rache connecsha…." He began to recite.

Suddenly a man appeared and stabbed him in the back, causing him to drop the ground dead.

"You! You're the leprechaun?" Sam said, his eyes wide.

"Indeed I am. Sorry about the mess, but your friend here went back on his deal." Wayne, the 'expert' on UFO's, said with a shrug.

"Well, you weren't very clear with him on the terms." Sam reminded the man.

"I told him there was a price. Once we come, we come to stay."

"So you take firstborns and then what? You just sit back and watch while they cover the abductions for you with all that crazy UFO crap? Which you help encourage, naturally. Nice con. But, your cover's blown now, Wayne." Sam said with a smirk.

"Blown? To whom? Brennan's dead. Your brother? Heh. He's marked. Been to the ranch. He's ours now." Wayne said.

"Yeah. Well. Then there's me. And there's those guys." Sam said, gesturing behind him.

Klaus and Kol stood there with smirks.

"You? But you can only see me if I let you." the leprechaun said with a grin before disappearing.

"True, but you'll have to get near me eventually, and we have very good reflexes." Klaus said proudly.

Wayne reappeared behind Sam, tilting his head as he studied him. Sam whirled around.

"You're not like the rest of them, are you?" the leprechaun asked.

"Nope." Sam said simply.

"I could see that right off. You're missing a certain piece, right in the center, ain't you?" he said.

"Says who?" Sam asked, glaring at him.

"We fairy folk? We're all about energy. And the human soul gives off a certain perfume. Your soul is far away. But not completely out of reach." He said.

Sam looked back, motioning for Klaus and Kol to stay put and not distract the fairy.

"Is that so?" he asked.

"Sam, I can get it back for you. For a price." Wayne offered.

"That's adorable. It's locked in a box with the devil." Sam said doubtfully.

"Your devil. Not mine." He said.

"There's no freaking way a leprechaun can do what angels cannot." Sam scoffed.

"Angels." Wayne let out a laugh. "Please. I'm talking about real magic, sonny. From my side of the fence. Got a way of getting in back doors."

"So you're my blue fairy? You can make me a real boy again?" Sam asked, smirking.

"When you wish upon a star." Wayne sang.

"Yeah. I got a wish." He pulled out a gun and shot the leprechaun.

"Iron! Painful, but not a deal breaker." He said, smirking at him.

Sam smirked and shot him again as Klaus and Kol walked forward now.

* * *

"I couldn't care less if he attacked the DA, I'm his lawyer." Dean heard from down the hallway.

Elena's heels were clicking on the floor as she walked towards his cell with the sheriff.

"How did you even get here so fast? We haven't even given him his phone call." he said.

"And that was your first mistake, mistreatment of a prisoner. Not good, sheriff." She said, winking at Dean when she came into view.

Then she turned and pressed her fingers to his forehead, knocking him out.

"Time to get you out of here." She said, walking up to the cell.

He stood and suddenly the man in the red cap appeared in front of him and he shouted, backing away.

"What is it?" Elena asked with wide eyes.

"You don't see him?" Dean demanded.

Suddenly he was thrown backwards into the wall.

"Dammit." She grumbled, opening the cell door with her mind.

* * *

"Come on, lads. You've already taken your best shots." Wayne said as he stood a little ways away from a pissed off and soulless hunter, a pissed off vampire, and a pissed off hybrid, all of whom were more roughed up than the fairy.

"You're right. I'm done shootin'. So do me a favor. And count this." Sam said, pulling out a shell and opening it, pouring the salt on the ground.

Kol and Klaus looked on with confusion, wondering what that could possibly do.

"Oh no." Wayne grumbled, collapsing to his knees on the ground.

"Why didn't I do that earlier?" Sam wondered.

"What did you do?" Kol asked with confusion.

"He has to count it." Sam said as he walked around the leprechaun and picked up the spellbook.

"Kum savaltcha…"

"One… three… ass." Wayne muttered.

"Ar noyang, kun enna, ret augus…"

"Dammit." The leprechaun growled.

"Kkuum doinsha and getta wabasach shul!"

* * *

Elena had Dean backed into a corner and her dagger was held out protectively. The man in the redcap appeared every few moments to try to get past her but she slashed at him. Suddenly he appeared and then let out a yell before disappearing.

"Is he here?" she asked hesitantly, looking around.

"No he's gone." Dean said, standing up slowly.

Then he looked at her.

"Thank you for not letting the fairies take me again. You're my hero." He said, gathering her into a hug.

Elena laughed and tucked her head underneath his chin.

"I love you. I would never let the fairies take you to their probing table." She said.

"I love you too." He sighed.

* * *

They were all standing around the Impala, Klaus and Kol looking a little confused as they were pulled over at the side of the road with the cooler out.

"Just go with it. It's something they do." Elena said with a grin, handing them beers.

They stared down at them with disgust.

"Don't be snobby." She rolled her eyes as she popped open her own beer.

She was back to wearing normal clothing and Dean's amulet was around her neck. He still hadn't gone back to wearing it but it wasn't just because of the way his and Sam's relationship had gone. He still hadn't forgiven God for abandoning them and the amulet just reaffirmed his betrayal in his mind.

"So. Here's to the tiniest DA. At least they're dropping the charges." Dean said, holding up his beer.

"Little big man." Sam nodded.

Dean glanced over at him.

"I was wondering something." He said, throwing his arm around Elena's shoulders as she leaned into his side.

"Yeah?" Sam asked.

Klaus and Kol remained silent, hesitantly sipping at the beer.

"You think Lucky Charms really could have, you know, soul to sender?" Dean asked.

"Come on." Sam scoffed. "It's crazy to think. He did talk a good game though."

"You said no. Why?" Elena asked.

"It was a deal. When's a deal ever been a good thing?" Sam shrugged, looking as though he was trying to figure out why they were questioning him.

The truth was, they were both concerned.

"I'm just trying to figure out how it works in there." Dean said in answer to his questioning look.

"Dude, I do still have all my brain cells. If anything, my brain works better now." Sam said.

"Just making sure that's where your head's at. That you're not having second thoughts about getting your soul back." the older brother said.

Sam remained silent for a moment, looking down at his beer.

"Oh." He finally said and their concern rose.

"You're not, are you?" Dean asked with narrowed eyes.

"No." Sam said.

They didn't have a chance to say anything else as Elena's phone rang.

"I have a lead." Bobby said as soon as she answered.

"On Crowley? What is it?" she asked.

"No, not really. On something else. There's demons watching me. They aren't Crowley's demons, either." The older hunter said.

"How do you know?" Elena questioned, her eyebrows knitting together.

"Because that Meg demon is with them." He said.

* * *

**Author's Note: There you go, a new chapter. Review please! Thanks to everyone who is sticking with me and reading! I love you all!**

**A few things:**

**1. Yes, Meg is back in the next chapter and a confrontation with Crowley is in the works. Cas is also back.**

**2. Please review!**

**3. READ THIS! Okay so here's the deal, I watched 'My Bloody Valentine' the other day with Jensen Ackles in it and I got a big inspiration. I'm writing a short story based on the movie as a crossover with TVD. I've already posted the first chapter and it's called "Up in Flames". Please please please go read it. You are amazing readers who have helped me write this story so please go over to that one and review. You would be doing me a huge favor. It has a big mix of TVD and SPN characters and it's all set in Mystic Falls. Please review it if you do read it. I've posted the first chapter and I'll probably post the second one later tonight or tomorrow. Thank you!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, RHatch89, chiwi, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, DrawingMyHeartOut, Nyssandria, CherrySin, Commander Jack Sheapard, slayerdiaries, anon, Nicole0203, diehardromantic, and the two guests for reviewing.**

**I will have a chapter that will have everything to do with the Petrova charm. I already said that I would have it and I have it all planned out but it's not happening now. It will happen at some point so please be patient. I'm not going to change my plans because that will mess up my entire plan for the story. But just be assured that it will happen.**

**To Nyssandria, Death is going to be in the next chapter and he is going to have a conversation with Elena. In fact, he's going to request (demand) something of her as well as drop a shocking piece of information on her.**

**A few things:**

**1. I took some liberties with the Originals, assuming some things about the that might not be true but I made it true in my story because… well… I can.**

**2. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

"I told you. I don't know anything about…"

The creature was interrupted by a metal bat connecting with the side of his head. Crowley walked around the chair before bending over to talk in his ear. The alpha shapeshifter had taken a last ditch effort to get in his torturer's head, changing so that he looked like Crowley but it didn't seem to be working.

"Sorry. But your exceptional good looks aren't gonna buy you any mercy." He said, confirming that the demon wasn't affected.

"I suggest you talk. What should we use next? Speculum? Or something more exotic?" Crowley asked, gesturing to the tray of instruments.

Anyone else would have looked silly with a white plastic and bloodstained apron over a thousand dollar suit. Crowley just looked like he was doing business.

"Look, it's Purgatory. All I know is I go there when I die. It's not like I can draw you a map." The alpha said, blood leaking out of his mouth and nose as he spoke.

"I happen to know you can." Crowley replied, his hand hovering over the torture instruments.

"You're wrong." He shot back.

"My sources are unimpeachable. You're the father of your entire species. You're really not pulling off this dumb-blonde act." The demon said with a roll of his eyes.

"I hope you appreciate just how much effort I've gone to to find something that can actually hurt you. My tinkering has cost several lesser shifters their lives." Crowley picked up a knife and held it up for the shifter to see. "Iridium."

A flicker of fear flashed across the creature's face, telling him everything he needed to know.

"Rarer than hell. Would've been cheaper to drop a castle on you, but I think we all agree… worth it. So, you start talking or I start chopping off all the bits that stick out." Crowley said.

"You go ahead, mate, see if it makes me…"

He launched forward, plunging the knife into his shoulder. The alpha let out a cry of pain as the sound of sizzling flesh filled the air. Crowley withdrew the knife and tossed it on the table.

"What was that?" he asked, leaning his ear in close to the shifter's face. "Purgatory's where?"

The alpha suddenly spat blood all over his face and Crowley made a disgusted noise, wiping it off with a towel.

"What is it with you animals?" the demon growled, picking up a baby monitor.

"Did I tell you? This prison has a nursery."

He switched it on and the sound of multiple babies crying came out of it.

"All yours. I know how much you care about them. You've spent months gathering them to your bosom." The shifter's eyes widened and he glared up at Crowley. "Not so cocky now, are we? Finding Purgatory is important to me. You have five seconds to tell me where it is. After that, I'll filet them in front of their spines in your lap."

Crowley smirked, knowing that he was bound to get a reaction out of the alpha at some point.

"Four. Three. Two."

"Kill 'em all. We'll make more." The alpha said with a smirk that literally matched Crowley's perfectly.

Crowley slammed the baby monitor down and grabbed a silver machete, swinging it around and beheading the shapeshifter.

"Guess I kinda lost my head." He commented before turning to walk out of the room.

* * *

It was dark and cold outside when Elena, Dean, and Sam pulled up to the power plant where an Escalade was waiting for them. Sam and Dean got out of the front and Elena slid out of the back, yanking their guest with her.

"You're late." The demon said, walking forward to take the bound up and hooded creature from her.

"Traffic was a bitch." Dean shot back.

"One rugaru." Sam commented as they dragged the thing to the Escalade and shoved it in the back.

"Where's Crowley?" Elena asked, standing between Dean and Sam.

"Banging a hooker in a sweet spot called None Of Your Business." The demon shot back with a smirk.

"Oh, look at that. Demon trying to be funny." Dean scoffed.

"Oh, is that what just happened?" Sam said with a raised eyebrow.

"Night, girls." The demon said, turning around to walk away.

"Wait, wait. Hold up, hold up." Dean said, stopping the demon as he turned to look back at them. "Are we ever gonna see Crowley again or is he just gonna keep sending his demon extras to pick up his laundry?"

"I'm sorry. I know you're speaking, I see your lips moving, but I can't understand what you're saying cause I don't speak Little Bitch."

Elena's hand went to her dagger and the demon followed the movements with a flinch of fear. He knew that she could easily kill him but he also thought that she wouldn't be stupid enough. Dean's hand went to hers, grabbing it and pulling it away despite the fact that he was feeling violent as well. The demon smirked now that he knew that she really wouldn't kill him. He turned and walked off, getting in the Escalade and driving away.

"Remember when we used to gank demons?" Dean said as they watched them drive off.

Elena turned back to him and looked up.

"You good from here? I gotta go tee up our favorite Originals. It'll take a while so I probably won't see you until morning." She said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, we're good. See you soon." He said.

She stood on her toes and gave him a kiss. Then she glanced back at Sam with a knowing look that he returned before she disappeared.

* * *

Dean shook his head as they walked into the run down old house that was serving as their current home base while they were in the area. With the threat of Crowley and also the other demons that seemed to be following them, staying in a motel seemed like a bad idea.

"No man, screw it, I'm done." He snapped.

"Calm down." Sam sighed.

"We've been going on these freaking Crowley runs and it's not getting us anywhere." Dean said, whirling around as he pulled out a bottle of whiskey.

"Dean…"

"I mean, the only thing that's really changed, is now I need a daily rape shower."

Sam sighed, staring at him.

"Okay, you're right. Let's go with Plan B. Oh yeah, we don't have one. So till we do, sorry dude, stock up on soap-on-a-rope."

Dean scoffed and shook his head, walking to the mantle and grabbing a cup.

"Dean, if you wanna get my soul back, that's what we gotta do, okay?" Sam reminded him.

"Yeah… you even want it back?" Dean asked.

"I'm working for Crowley, aren't I?" Sam said.

Dean turned, pouring the amber liquid into the cup.

"Yeah, well, who says he's gonna hold up his end, you know? It is Crowley. You ever think of that? Right?"

He turned back to see that Sam was gone and silence was filling the room.

"So, I guess the moment's over, is that what you're saying?" there was no answer. "Sam!"

He set the glass down and pulled out his gun, sneaking over into the next room to look for Sam. He found him unconscious on the floor and glanced around with wide eyes. Suddenly a metal pole came out of nowhere and connected with his head, knocking him out.

* * *

Dean groaned as his eyes opened. Sam was coming to about the same time and they both discovered that they were bound to a chair.

"What now?" Dean grumbled, glaring at the three men behind Sam.

Sam glanced up and a knowing look bloomed on his face.

"I think I know who you can ask." He said.

Dean glanced around and immediately recognized the demon behind him.

"Evil bitch." He snapped.

"Keep sweet talking me, this could go a whole new direction." Meg said with a smirk, walking around to stand in front of them.

"Meg. I've been dying to see you again." Dean said, glaring up at her.

"Well, here I am, big boy. So, what should we do now?" she asked, raising her eyebrow at him.

"How about I rip you to shreds?" he offered.

"Kinky, I like. A little Q&A first, if you don't mind. Now, where's your boss?" she asked.

Sam chuckled.

"You think we work for somebody?"

She glanced back at him.

"I happen to know for a fact you've been juggling Crowley's orphans. Now where is he?"

"Don't know. Don't care." Sam said.

"You've been working his beat for months." Meg said, looking between them.

"Doesn't mean we get face time." Sam informed her.

The demon turned back to Dean, straddling his lap.

"Where's he take all those things you snatch up for him? I bet you an all-day sucker that's where his majesty's holed up." She said.

Dean stared at her without answering.

"Okay, officially over the foreplay. Satisfy me, or I please myself!"

Sam let out a laugh as she pressed Ruby's knife to his throat.

"Something funny, Sam?" Dean said through gritted teeth, really not amused at the moment.

"Yeah… Meg." Sam said, nodding at the demon.

"Really? 'Cause where I'm sitting…"

"Don't worry." Sam interruped his brother. "She can't do jack squat. She's totally screwed."

"Sam, not helping!" Dean growled out as Meg glared down at Dean with a murderous expression.

"Look at her, Dean. She's furious. If she could kill you, she'd've done it by now. She's running."

"Am I?" Meg asked, climbing off of Dean's lap.

"Judging by the level of flop sweat on all of you, yeah. Which means you're running from Crowley. Which makes sense. Crowley would want to hunt down all the Lucifer loyalists now that he's the big man on campus." Sam shrugged.

"How would you know?" she asked.

"It's what I'd do." Sam admitted.

Dean suddenly looked up at Meg, smiling.

"You know what, I think you're right, Sammy. But I don't think that's all that's making her nervous, is it, Meg?" Dean asked.

She glanced over at him.

"You're in a hurry, which means that you know what's coming. Or rather… who's coming. But sorry to tell you this, you're way out of time." Dean said.

"I will rip your heart out. I only need one of you to lead me to Crowley." She threatened, raising the knife.

"She can't kill us. She needs us, both of us, to get her to Crowley so she can stick that knife in his neck. It's him or her."

"Well, I hope you both lose." A new voice said.

They all looked to see Elena standing there with Klaus and Kol on either side of her. The demons didn't know who the males were but they sensed that they were not simple humans.

"But good luck." Elena said with a smirk as she walked forward.

Meg stumbled backwards a few feet, remembering her last confrontation with Elena.

"You're outmatched, Meg. So, you know what you gotta do now, right?" Sam said.

"Let me guess. You're gonna tell me." Meg said with a smirk that was covering the fear in her eyes as she looked at Elena.

"Work with us." Elena said.

"Whoa, what?" Dean said, not expecting that.

He thought that he and Sam were bait for Meg and her demons so that they could kill them, not so that they could work with them. Elena gave him a look that told him to trust her.

"We'll hand you Crowley with a bow on one condition. We come with you and you help us wring a little something out of him before you hack him to bits." Sam said.

"What?" Meg asekd.

"Doesn't matter. Question is, can you get us what we need?" Elena asked, walking forward and standing in front of the demons.

All of the males in the room watched as the females stared each other down.

"I apprenticed under Alastair in Hell just like your brother. So Dean, can I make Crowley do whatever I want?" Meg asked, turning to look at him.

"Yeah, she can." Dean nodded, not liking this one bit but going along with it anyways.

"It's a deal then. Hugs and puppies all around!" Meg said with a thrilled grin as she turned to walk off with her demons following her.

One of them stopped at Dean's chair and glared down at him. Elena stepped up next to Dean and glared at him.

"You gonna kiss me?" Dean asked him.

The demon glanced up at Elena and stared back at her fearlessly, obviously not getting the message that she wasn't to be messed with.

"Come on!" Meg called the demon, tired of being in the rundown house.

* * *

"What are you doing?" Dean said.

Elena and Sam turned from where they were packing up supplies. Dean had a pissed off expression and they exchanged a look.

"What do you mean?" Elena asked warily.

"I mean, what are you doing?!" he yelled louder.

Klaus and Kol glanced up from where they were sitting in two chairs conversing quietly.

"Dean, you wanted to screw over Crowley. Merry Christmas." Sam shrugged.

Dean gave him an aghast expression.

"What?" the younger Winchester asked.

"What?" Dean scoffed. "This is your best idea? You wanna work with a demon again?"

"Dean, it was actually my idea. Sam is just going along with it because he knows it's the best idea. We need as many people on our side as we can get when we go after Crowley, demons or not." Elena said, stepping between them.

"She tried to kill Dad! She tried to kill Ellen and Jo! She succeeded in killing Jeremy!" Dean snapped, referring to Meg.

"I know. But we can't look at this emotionally, Dean." Elena sighed, reaching out to take his hand.

"We need her." Sam threw in.

"The hell we do! That little bitch is gonna screw us over so fast…" Dean began.

"Of course." Sam nodded. "Which is why we'll screw her first. Meg and her little posse are dead the second we're done with them."

"Yeah, if they don't kill us." Dean scoffed.

"They won't." Sam said confidently.

Dean glanced between him and Elena with a questioning look.

"We're bringing insurance." Elena said.

* * *

After Dean expressed his doubts for about thirty minutes on whether this plan would work, Elena and Sam finally walkd out of the house and stood in the grass.

"You first, he probably won't listen to me." Sam said, gesturing to Elena as she glanced over at him.

She sighed and looked up at the night sky.

"Castiel, we need you. It's important." she said.

After a few moments of silence, she looked over at Sam with a shrug.

"Cas, we found something." Sam said, looking up at the sky now.

Elena looked at him with confusion.

"It's this gold box. Apparently Nazis were after it back in the day, someone opened it and their face melted off."

She fought back a smirk, wondering if the angel would actually go for this.

"I think it's… ready for this… the Ark of the Covenant. Yeah. So…"

"I'm here."

They both whirled around to see Castiel standing there looking just like he always did.

"Where is the box?" he asked.

Sam scoffed as Elena hid her amused grin.

"I can't believe you fell for that. That was the plot of Raiders, idiot." Sam said.

Cas looked at Elena with an accusing look and she shrugged apologetically.

"I'm mid-battle." He growled.

"I could give a rat's ass about your little pissing match with Raphael." Sam snapped.

"Listen to me, Sam…" the angel said, starting forward.

"No, you listen! I don't care what you're dealing with up in Heaven. You owe me." Sam said.

Elena moved forward with a sigh.

"You may not care, but believe me…"

"I'm sorry, do you think we're here to talk this out?" Sam interrupted him with a glare.

"Sam, I can't just…"

"If you don't help us, I will hunt you down and kill you."

"Sam!" Elena said, looking at him with shock as she put a hand on his chest.

"Will you, boy? How?" Cas demanded, finally having enough of Sam and his threats.

"Cas he won't…"

"I don't know yet. But I will look until I find out, and I don't sleep." Sam reminded the angel.

"You need help, Sam." Castiel said, glaring at him.

"Cas, we need your help. We wouldn't have called you if we didn't. I'm sorry." Elena said, pushing Sam away from the angel and standing in front of him.

"Please." She said.

Dean glanced up as they walked in, Castiel walking next to Elena. Klaus and Kol were out at a bar because they didn't want to remain in the 'disgusting hovel' any longer than they had to. They were all glad, not wanting to deal with the spoiled Originals any more than they had to.

"You actually showed." He said with surprise as he looked at the angel. "Wow, I owe you two a chicken dinner. What happened?"

"No big. This is what friends do for each other." Sam said with a shrug.

Cas glared at him as Elena sighed and rubbed her forehead. Dean looked on with a raised eyebrow, somehow feeling like the conversation hadn't exactly been friendly.

They all gathered around as Cas worked on a ritual to locate Crowley.

"It's not working. Crowley's hidden from me." he admitted with a furrowed brow.

"Well…" Dean sighed. "… looks like we're gonna have to try this the hard way."

While they thought that they were being quiet and sneaky as they searched through Samuel's office in the compound, Cas having teleported them there, apparently they weren't as Samuel walked in and turned on the lights with a gun in his hand.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

Elena glanced over at Dean as they all, except for Cas, had looks similar to getting caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

"What do you want?" Samuel demanded.

"We wanna know where Crowley is." Dean finally spoke up.

"If I even knew, why would I tell you?" Samuel asked.

"Cause you're our grandfather." Dean shrugged.

Samuel stared at him for a moment.

"Samuel, I'm gonna get my soul back." Sam said, trying to convince the older hunter to help them.

"Who says you can get it back?" Samuel demanded, staring at him.

"Me." Sam replied.

"Look, I'd like to help, but I'm sorry." He said, shaking his head.

"It's your grandson's soul!" Elena said in an accusing tone, her disgust for this man rising up again like it was only yesterday that they discovered he was working for Crowley and forcing them to work for the demon too.

If she found out that he was the one who'd captured Elijah, Rebekah, and Finn, her disgust would turn into fury very quickly.

"I can't." Samuel sighed.

"What is wrong with you? Do you wanna work for Crowley?" Dean growled.

He glanced over at the angel.

"Cas, can you give us a minute?" he asked.

Castiel looked between them with a squinting gaze.

"Can you go make sure that Klaus and Kol haven't murdered half the town?" Elena asked.

He nodded and disappeared.

"We're your blood. But if you don't wanna help us I can't make you. But I just gotta know why. What is Crowley holding over you? You owe us that."

Samuel looked between Dean and Sam before walking to the desk. He pulled out a picture and handed it to Dean.

"Mom?" Dean asked.

"He's gonna give her back to me." Samuel sighed.

"Crowley's gonna bring mom back from the dead?" Dean confirmed with a furrowed brow.

Elena glanced between them with wide eyes.

"You tell me you don't want her back?" Samuel asked.

Dean looked back at the photograph without answering.

"You know, the one difference between us you know how to live without her." Samuel informed him.

"Look, I know how you feel." Dean said.

"No, you don't. She's my daughter, and she's dead, and I can do something about it."

"Do you really think Crowley is gonna make good here?" Dean questioned.

"He brought Sam back! And me!" Samuel exclaimed, gesturing between them.

"Trust me, don't go down that road." Elena said.

Even if Crowley would do it, she'd met Mary in heaven. She was happy with John. Yanking her out would be unfair for many reasons.

"What are you saying?" Samuel demanded.

"We're saying, stop trying. It's gonna go nowhere good. Samuel, I know we've had our differences, but I'm your grandson and I'm telling you that this is wrong for so many reasons." Dean said, trying to convince him.

"You hypocrite!" Samuel accused him with a glare.

"I'm asking you to learn from our mistakes! Doing this, this is how the bad guy gets us every time. It's our Achilles' heel. Apparently it runs in the family. We will figure something else out. Okay?"

There was a moment of silence in which they all waited for his decision.

"I'm sorry Dean, but I…"

"Fine. Bring her back. But what are you gonna tell her? You gonna tell her you made a deal with a demon? That you wouldn't help out her sons?" Dean snapped.

"That's enough! Just get out." Samuel growled.

Elena glared at Samuel as she held out her hands for the boys to take and they disappeared from the office, leaving Samuel alone.

* * *

They were back at the house. They were all gathered in the living room doing research. Well, Elena, Dean, and Sam were doing research at one of the tables. Klaus and Kol were sitting at another table drinking and commenting snarkily on every theory that they would throw out. Cas was watching something on the TV and they weren't really paying attention to him.

"It's very complex." The angel suddenly said.

"Mm-hm." Dean said without really listening.

They just knew that if they didn't answer the angel somehow, he would keep saying the same thing until he was certain that they heard him.

"If the pizza man truly loves this babysitter…"

They all glanced up with alarmed expressions, even Klaus and Kol. It finally occurred them what exactly was showing on the television.

"…why does he keep slapping her rear?"

Elena bit her lip hard, putting her hand over her mouth to keep from crying or laughing, she wasn't sure which. Klaus and Kol were both biting back remarks, she was certain of it.

"Perhaps she's done something wrong." Cas decided.

"You're watching porn?" Dean finally said.

Cas glanced over at them before looking back at the screen.

"Why?" the older Winchester asked.

"It was there." he said, squinting at the screen.

"You don't watch porn in a room full of dudes… and a girl." Dean said when he glanced at Elena. "And you don't talk about it. Just turn it off."

"I don't know, maybe it could teach the angel a few things." Kol said with a grin.

"Nothing he doesn't already know, to be sure. Right, feathers?" Klaus said, smirking.

"Stop trying to influence our angel." Elena said, glaring at the vampire and the hybrid.

"Well we didn't put on the porn." Klaus said defensively.

Cas suddenly glanced down at his lap and Elena's buried her face in her hands to keep from laughing at this whole situation.

"Well, now he's got a boner." Dean sighed, looking at Sam for help but he had nothing to say.

Suddenly, there a knock on the door. Dean and Sam both pulled out their guns as Dean went to open it. Samuel was standing there. Dean reluctantly stepped aside, letting him in. Both Klaus and Kol got murderous looks on their faces as they knew that this man possibly had something to do with their siblings' disappearances. Elena shook her head at them, telling them to calm down with her eyes. They would deal with Samuel later if that was true. Samuel glanced at them and she saw the panic flicker across his face before he looked at the television.

"This what you boys do, sit around watching pornos with angels and vampires?" he asked.

"We're not supposed to talk about it." Cas piped up.

Elena stood, crossing the room and switching off the television.

"Why are you here, Samuel?" Dean demanded.

"It's what Mary would want." He sighed, placing a few papers on the table.

"Now, this is what I know. Whatever we bag ends up there." the older hunter said, showing them on a map.

Elena walked to Klaus and Kol and leaned over to talk to them in low tones that Samuel wouldn't be able to hear.

"That's where he tortures 'em, interrogates 'em, I don't really know. Only been outside the places, but it's a death trap. Nothing gets in that Crowley doesn't want in and nothing gets out, period."

"Why aren't we killing him?" Klaus said softly.

"Because we don't kill humans." Elena said, staring between them. "And we need him to get your siblings back. Now I'm taking a lot of faith on you two here. I will do whatever it takes to get Elijah, Rebekah, and Finn back. But if you so much as touch Samuel or anyone else without consulting me first, it's over and I'll kick both of your asses."

"I like it when you get all badass, lovely. It makes me tingly inside." Kol said with a smirk.

"Shut up." She said with a roll of her eyes.

"Well, thanks." Dean said to Samuel once he finished explaining everything.

"I wish you wouldn't do this." the other man said before turning to walk out.

"Come with us." Sam said.

Samuel stopped and turned to look at all of them.

"I may be soft, but I'm not suicidal." He said, walking out.

* * *

Dean, Sam, Elena, Cas, Klaus, and Kol all walked out to find Meg and her three demon grunts waiting on them. Meg immediately eyed up Castiel.

"Remember me? I sure remember you, Clarence." She said with a smirk.

"Why are we working with these abominations?" Cas asked, glaring back at her.

"Keep talking dirty. Makes my meatsuit all dewy." Meg said happily.

"Alright, simmer down. We know where Crowley is." Dean said, breaking up their conversation.

"Great. Do tell." She said, glancing at the elder Winchester.

"Yeah, tell you, so you can just leave us for dead." Sam scoffed.

"You boys have serious abandonment issues, you know that?" Meg said with an impatient tone.

"We'll show you, alright? But we're all going together." Sam said definitively.

"What, I'm just supposed to trust you?" Meg asked.

"No, you're not that stupid." He said simply, holding out his hand. "Give me the knife for a minute."

"No, I'm not that stupid." She fired back.

"Do you want us to take you to Crowley or not?" Sam said.

They all watched, unsure of what he was doing. Meg unwillingly handed him the demon-killing knife. Sam hesitated for a moment before thrusting it into the demon who was scowling at Dean earlier. The other two demons started forward with clenched fists as they looked on with wide eyes.

"You saw him. He was more interested in killing us than getting the job done. I just did all of us a favor." Sam said quickly.

Meg sighed before nodding at her grunts to step back. Sam turned to walk off.

"Hey! You just gonna keep that?" she demanded, gesturing to the knife.

"You took this from us. I'm taking it back. We leave in one hour." Sam said simply.

Meg turned and smirked at all of them before walking past.

* * *

Dean and Elena were packing up for the hunt inside the house. Cas was there as well but he was standing at window staring out.

"I'm sorry that you don't like this. I don't like it much either, trust me. But I knew that it was our best chance." She said, looking up at him.

"Well… at least we've got a big group. That might help a lot." He said.

"If it comes down to it, would you rather me go find the Originals or help you go after Crowley?" she asked.

"The Originals. We can handle Crowley until you get them out of there." he said.

"You sure?" she asked.

"I know that you care about Elijah and, as much as you're trying to hide it, you're worried about him." he said.

Elena bit her lip and looked down at her hands.

"What if Crowley killed him? Or all of them?" she asked.

"Then you'll get the honor of killing him back." Dean said.

She sighed and glanced over at Cas, worried about his silence.

"You know, Cas, you could help." Dean suggested.

"I'm ambivalent about what we're attempting." He replied, still staring out the window.

"Well, breaking into monster Gitmo is not exactly a two-for-one in the champagne room." the hunter said with a shrug.

"I'm not sure retrieving Sam's soul is wise." The angel said, turning to them.

"Wait, what?" Dean said.

"Why?" Elena asked at the same time.

Why would he be saying this when all they'd been trying to do was getting Sam's soul back.

"I want him to survive." Castiel said.

"What are you talking about?" Dean questioned, walking forward.

"Sam's soul has been locked in the cage with Michael and Lucifer for more than a year. And they have nothing to do but take their frustrations out on him." Cas said, walking forward as well. "You understand? If we try to force that mutilated thing down Sam's gullet, we have no idea what will happen. It could be catastrophic."

Elena pressed her lips together, contemplating what he was saying.

"You mean he dies." Dean said.

"I mean, he doesn't. Paralysis. Insanity. Psychic pain so profound that he's locked inside himself for the rest of his life." the angel answered.

"But you're saying you don't know anything for sure. I mean, he could be fine." Dean said.

"He could be, yes." Cas nodded.

"Okay then." He said, turning back to finish packing.

"But I sincerely doubt it." Castiel added.

Elena looked at Dean with uncertainty in her eyes.

"Well, if he's not fine, then you fix him." Dean said simply.

"Dean, I wouldn't know where to begin."

"Then you figure it out, Cas." He said.

"Or we can get Gabriel or someone to help us. There are a lot of options here, Cas." Elena said.

He looked between them both with a wary expression.

"Come on. I mean, the guy's a frigging replicant. He needs his soul. Look, we get it back. And if there are complications, then we will figure out a way to deal with those, too." Dean said.

"Of course." He agreed.

Dean nodded, turning away with the feeling that he won the argument.

"Or we fail, and Sam suffers horrifically." Castiel said.

Elena sighed, glancing around in time to see Sam slipping out of the room. He'd heard everything.

* * *

She didn't have long, just a few minutes before they left. Everyone else was gathered outside but she went back inside, claiming that she left her knife inside.

"Are you there?" she murmured softly.

"Well look who came to us for help." A voice said.

She turned to see Ruby leaning against the wall.

"Not to you. I didn't want you." she snapped.

"Oh, I missed you too." The demon said sarcastically.

"You want to know about Sam." Jess said from where she was sitting on the counter of the kitchen.

"Is it true? Will his soul really…"

"Yes." A deep voice said.

"But… what are we supposed to do?" she asked, facing him without really knowing why she was asking her apparitions for advice.

"You get it back anyways." John answered.

She tilted her head to the side.

"Who are you really? Cause you're not John. You don't give a damn about Sam." she said.

He simply stared at her.

"Okay then, where have you been? Before you were showing up all the time without my permission and I haven't heard from you in a long time." Elena questioned.

"You didn't want us here so we stopped coming." Jess said.

"Elena?" she sighed and grabbed her dagger off of the counter at Dean's voice.

"I'm not giving up on figuring this out. But I have bigger things to deal with." She said, turning to walk out.

* * *

"Seems pretty quiet." Dean commented as they stood outside the old prison that Crowley was using as his base.

They must have been a sight to see. Three demons, an angel, a part angel-part guardian, two hunters, a vampire, and a vampire-werewolf hybrid. Elena was certain that there had been no such alliance before now.

"It's not, I can feel it." Castiel said, glancing down at it.

He glanced up at Elena and held out his hand. She took it without question, trusting him.

"Meet us at the side door." He said simply before they disappeared.

When they landed in a hallway, they saw that it was covered in leaves and trash but there was nothing else there. No demon guards, no Crowley, nothing.

"This is… not right." Elena said, glancing around.

"I agree." Cas nodded, walking down the hallway towards the side door as she followed him.

He opened the door to let everyone in.

"This all seem a little too easy for you?" Dean said as he walked in.

"Way too easy." Sam agreed.

They walked down the hallway, their flashlights on because there were no lights. Sam peeked into one of the cells and a vampire popped out, growling at him. Dean and Elena both walked in front of the rest of the group.

"Is someone there?" a female's voice said.

They exchaned looks before walking forward to see the djinn that had attacked them back in Mystic Falls

"Please. Please help me." she pleaded, recognizing them. "You gotta get me out of here. Please! You gotta get me out of here."

"Come on. We gotta move." Sam said.

As they walked down the hallway, Cas suddenly stopped short.

"Wait." He said.

"What is it?" Dean questioned.

After a moment, they heard dogs barking in the distance.

"Dammit. Here come the guards." Meg muttered.

"Hellhounds." Dean realized.

As they neared, everyone backed away.

"Go!" they all ran for the nearest set of doors.

The two demon grunts of Meg were in the back and were dragged down by the hounds. They left them behind, wedging the doors shut as Sam and Dean drew a salt line in front of them. Blood splattered on the windows of the door as the demons' screaming was cut off.

"I knew this was a trap." Dean growled.

"What do you want, a cupcake?" Meg shot back.

"Alright, that should keep them out." Sam said, finishing up on the salt.

"Not for long. How many of them are there?" Dean asked.

"Lots. I'll be pulling for you … from Cleveland." Meg said, smirking at them.

"What?!" Dean demanded.

"I didn't know this was gonna happen. Bright side them chewing up my meatsuit ought to buy you a few seconds. Seacrest out." she explained before opening her mouth to vacate her body.

They all stared at her as nothing happened. Cas glanced around.

"A spell, I think, from Crowley. Within these walls you're locked inside your body." He said.

Dean smirked at Meg.

"Karma's a bitch, bitch." He commented and she glared at him.

Sam took out the demon-killing knife.

"What are you doing, gonna slash at thin air until you hit something?" Dean asked.

He handed the knife to Meg.

"You can see them. Take this. Hold them off. It's our best shot." He said to the demon.

She stared at him for a moment.

"At Crowley. Take it and go. You kill the smarmy dick. I'll hold off the dogs." She said.

"How you gonna do that?" Dean asked.

Meg turned, grabbing Castiel by the neck and suddenly kissing him. All of them, even Klaus and Kol, watched with wide eyes as the demon and the angel kissed passionately. None of them noticed Meg digging around in his coat. When she pulled away with a grin, Cas turned and pushed her against the wall, continuing the make out session with interest. Dean pointed back at the hellhounds who were close to breaking down the door but didn't say anything. Finally they broke apart and Meg smirked at the angel. Elena was actually smiling, interested to see that Cas could do something like that.

"What was that?" Meg breathed.

Cas glanced at them, looking slightly dazed.

"I learned that from the pizza man." he informed them.

Elena laughed slightly, amused by the situation unlike Dean and Sam.

"Well, A plus for you. I feel so … clean." The demon said, shrugging

"Okay, gotta go."

She held up Castiel's angel-killing sword and they all stared at her with wide eyes.

"Whoa, whoa, is that gonna work on a hellhound?" Dean asked.

"Well, we're about to find out. Run." Meg said, preparing herself as she faced the door.

Elena began to run off but stopped.

"What are you doing?" Dean demanded.

"You three go find Crowley, we'll go find Elijah, Rebekah and Finn after we take care of the hellhounds." She said, turning to run back to Meg.

"Seriously?" Dean said, surprised that she was helping Meg.

"Yep!" she said, grabbing Kol and Klaus as she went.

"Why are we helping the demon?" Klaus asked.

"Because I said so." she said, pulling out her dagger.

"What…" Meg said, glancing over at her with confusion. "You hate me. I tried to kill your friends and family."

"And I've killed plenty of your brothers and sisters. Anyways, just think of it as paying you back for helping us. We're not going to be in debt to a demon." She said.

"All right. It's gonna get messy." Meg shrugged.

"Back up, guys. You won't be able to help us." Elena warned the Originals.

* * *

"Can't see jack." Dean muttered as they walked down a staircase.

As they rounded the corner and went down another set of stairs, Cas disappeared in a flash of light.

"Cas?!" Dean yelled, looking around.

"Dean." Sam said, noticing someone standing there.

"You sold us out?" Dean demanded of Samuel, who was holding his hand to an angel-banishing sigil.

Two demons appeared, grabbing them both.

"Damn you, Samuel!" Dean growled.

"Yes. And I have to say, best purchase I've made since Dick Cheney." Crowley said, walking out.

"Hiya, Crowley. How's tricks?" Dean grunted, struggling with the demon holding him.

"Above your pay grade. Been working. Big things. Alas, you'll be too dead to participate." Crowley said.

"Really?" Dean asked, glaring at him.

"Shame I have to do away with you both. Rather enjoyed your indentured servitude." The demon sighed.

* * *

Elena was immediately thrown against the wall by one of the hellhounds. She ducked its gnashing jaws as Meg stabbed the blade into its side. Then she was thrown back by another one and Elena was left on her own. She slashed at the hound with her dagger, finally burying the blade in its throat. She immediately moved onto another one, jumping on its back and stabbing it multiple times as it howled loudly. Finally, they managed to kill all of them.

"Hey, teamwork." Meg sighed as Elena helped her off the ground.

They climbed over the hounds and faced Klaus and Kol, who looked impressed.

"Why couldn't we see them?" Kol asked.

"They're a product of hell. Meg's a demon from hell, that's why she could see them. I've got angel in me so that's why I could see them." Elena explained.

"Go on. I'll make sure there aren't anymore." Meg said.

Elena nodded, catching Klaus and Kol's sleeves and running with them down the hall. Meg started forward but was suddely knocked off her feet by a demon that appeared in Christian Campbell's body.

* * *

"Sam?!" Dean called from the cell that he was shoved into by the demons.

"Yeah." Sam answered from the cell next door.

"I'm standing in pee." He said, glancing down at the puddles at his feet.

There was a moment of silence.

"Consider yourself lucky." Sam replied.

"Yikes." Dean grimaced. "That sucks."

Suddenly the little window in Dean's cell door opened from the outside. Samuel was standing there.

"You want forgiveness, find a priest." He snapped.

"I just want you to understand." Samuel replied.

"Oh, I understand… that you're a liar. But I do want to know one thing." He said.

Samuel tilted his head to the side.

"Did you lead Crowley to the Original vampires?" he asked.

Samuel lifted his head slightly.

"They're monsters, Dean. I did what every other hunter would have done. What you should have done." He said, pointing at him.

"I didn't touch them because Elena asked me not to! And you know what? I learned that not all creatures need to die!" Dean bellowed.

"Oh you did it cause your pretty little girlfriend asked you?" Samuel scoffed.

Dean shook his head.

"You talk about putting blood first, which is funny cause you sound just like my dad. The difference is, he actually did!" Dean yelled.

"I am putting blood first!" Samuel shot back.

"Oh, gimme a break!" Dean scoffed.

"Mary's my blood! My daughter! Don't come at me like I sold you out, Dean. You sold out your own mother. It was her or Sam, and you chose Sam, plain and simple." Samuel ranted.

"Oh, that is such crap! You wanna know what really happened? You chose a demon over your own grandsons!" he snapped.

"See it how you want. I don't even know what Sam is. And you want me to protect him? And you? You're a stranger. No, really, tell me what exactly are you supposed to be to me?" Samuel demanded.

Dean's face darkened suddenly and Samuel felt a chill run down his spine at the murderous look in his eyes.

"I'll tell you who I am. I'm the guy you never wanna see again. Cause I'll make it out of here, trust me. And the next time you see me, I'll be there to kill you." Dean threatened.

"Don't think there's gonna be a next time." Samuel said.

"Whatever gets you through the night." Dean allowed.

The window slammed shut and Dean turned away, his hands shaking as he attempted to get his temper under control. Suddenly the door opened and two demons walked in, grabbing his arms and dragging him out. He glared at Samuel as he passed as Sam listened from his cell.

* * *

"Can you sense them?" Elena asked the brothers as they ran down the hall.

Despite her other abilities, Elena did not have super speed so the vampires were running at human speed because they knew that if they came across demons, they would need her.

"Vaguely. We're close." Klaus said.

They rounded a corner to see three demons guardian a room.

"I guess that's the place." Elena said.

"Hey!" One of the demons yelled.

She pulled out her dagger.

"Hi. How are you?" she asked, walking up to them.

The first one came at her and she immediately stabbed him in the chest.

"Fine, no small talk." She muttered.

* * *

Meg grunted as she struggled against the binds holding her to the chair that she was spread out on, naked with a few straps covering the important parts.

"So, Crowley wants to know… well, everything. Told me to carve out of you." the demon in Christian said, holding up the demon-killing knife they'd taken off of Sam when they captured him.

"Whatever makes you feel like a man." Meg fired back.

He chuckled, trailing the knife down her chest and abdomen.

"You talk a mean game. But you're scared." He informed her.

* * *

Dean looked around as he was shoved into a room with half eaten bodies and blood all over the place. He grimaced around for a moment before the door opened and two other men were shoved in.

"Enjoy." The demon said with a smirk before leaving.

The two men with bloodstained mouths smirked at him.

"Alright, alright." He said with a smile as he held his hands up. "Shawshank's a great flick, but let's skip the shower scene, huh?"

"Look, breakfast." One of the ghouls said to the other.

* * *

"What did you do with my brother?" Sam demanded as the same two demons walked into his cell.

"Oh, you'll find out." One of them said. "You're about to join him."

They both stopped short and looked up to see a devil's trap painted on the ceiling. A drop of the liquid slid off of it and onto one of the demons' forehead. He wiped it away and squinted at it, noticing that it was blood. They looked at Sam, who grinned at them, his teeth stained in blood and his wrist bleeding with a bite mark on it.

* * *

Elena grimaced as she dropped the last demon. Her alarm bells were going off but she could only hope that Dean was all right because she had a job to do here before she could go to him.

"After you." Klaus said, looking around at the dead demons on the floor.

"Thank you." Elena said, opening the door and walking in.

Sure enough, all three of the Originals were in the room. They were all dirty, bloodstained, and unconscious. Elena ran to Rebekah, who was closest and looked at the IV that was hooked into her arm. She pulled the needle out and smelled the liquid that was dripping out.

"Vervain?" she whispered, wondering how Crowley knew about it.

Kol and Klaus were unhooking the other two from their IV's.

"It's perfect. Just injecting an Original with vervain wouldn't keep them down for long but keeping it flowing through their veins would weaken them enough that they can't fight back." Klaus growled out, lifting Elijah's head to look at him.

"Brother?" he said.

"What?" Rebekah whimpered weakly as Elena pushed her head up as well.

Her long blonde hair was stringy and hanging in her face.

"Rebekah?" she said, not caring that this vampire had attacked her.

Crowley was a bigger problem than the Originals.

"Elena?" the blonde mumbled, her eyes fluttering open.

Suddenly Elena was ripped off of Rebekah and thrown into the wall. The demon surged forward and she ducked his attack, throwing him to the ground. Another demon tackled with her and she struggled with him for a moment, finally throwing him off.

"You really don't think you'll win this battle." She said, gesturing to his fellow demons that were dead out in the hallway.

"I don't know, what if I take away your weapon?" he asked, holding up a silver dagger.

Elena's eyes widened and her and went to her sheath. It was gone and he was holding it.

"You son of a bitch." She growled starting forward.

"Ah ah. I wonder if this thing could kill one of these bloodsuckers." He said, turning to look at where Klaus and Kol were holding Finn and Elijah up, staring at Elena with questioning eyes.

The demon grinned and pulled his arm back, aiming for Elijah, who was drooping in Klaus' hold. Elena squeezed her eyes shut and disappeared just as the demon threw the knife. Another demon appeared and stabbed a syringe full of vervian into Klaus' neck. He growled loudly and threw him into the wall, leaving Elijah swaying on the spot. Klaus didn't have tie to get back to Elijah and knife came hurtling towards his heart. A thump filled the room but the knife was not buried in Elijah's heart. Elena collapsed to the ground with a cry of pain, the knife buried deep in her chest. Kol suddenly dropped Finn into the chair and ran up to the demon, breaking his neck without another word. Elena grasped the hilt of the dagger and pulled it out, letting out a scream of pain again.

Klaus knelt next to her after setting Elijah back in the chair.

"Elena… what…?" he had no idea what to do.

He looked up at Kol for help, who shrugged. Without thinking much about it, his fangs extended and he bit into his wrist.

"Elena you have to…"

"No… no." she said, pushing him away.

"Come on, lovely. You must. You'll die." He said, looking at the blood staining her white shirt.

"No… I…" she didn't fight much more as he pulled her against his chest and shoved his wrist into her mouth.

She struggled against him but her strength was failing because of the wound. The blood unwillingly slid down her throat and she suddenly screamed loudly, shoving him off with more power than she felt that she had. Klaus hit the wall and stared at her with wide eyes as she convulsed on the ground before becoming still. He ran to her and felt her neck.

"She is still alive. Brother, get our siblings out. I'll take her to the angel. He should be able to heal her." Klaus said, noticing that the wound was not healing.

"I thought you cared nothing for the doppelganger." Kol said, lifting Rebekah up to get her out first.

"She did not stop at anything to help us get our siblings back. She took a dagger for Elijah without a second thought. Perhaps I misjudged her worth." Klaus said, lifting her into his arms before running out of the room at full speed.

* * *

"Frickin' hate ghouls!" Dean growled out as he fought them off from trying to kill and eat him.

"Dean?!" Sam yelled as he ran into the room.

"Let me go, son of a bitch!" Dean snapped, shoving one of the gouls off just in time for another to jump on his back and attempt to sink his teeth into his neck.

"Dean!" Sam ran forward and dragged the ghoul off after yanking a metal pole off of the wall.

He knocked it to the ground and stabbed the metal bar into his chest. Dean got up and shoved the other one into the wall, moving aside as Sam staked that one too.

"We gotta go. They won't be down for long and we don't have any guns to shoot them in the head." Dean said, grabbing Sam to haul him out of the room.

* * *

"You know, you're sticking that thing in all the wrong places." Meg said, her voice slightly hoarse from screaming.

"Really? You sure were squealing." The demon said with a smirk, holding up the bloody knife.

"Knock yourself out. It's a host body. Some girl from Cheboygan, moved to LA to be an actress. It's probably not even the worst thing that ever happened to her." Meg said with a grin.

She screamed loudly as he continued torturing her, slicing her stomach open. When she caught sight of something, she began laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" the demon demanded as he stopped and straightened up, glaring at her.

Dean suddenly grabbed the knife out of his hand, stabbing him in the back. The demon in Christian's body flashed a few times.

"Dean Winchester's behind you, meatsack." Meg said with a last chuckle as he fell to the ground dead.

"We should go." Sam said, running in as Dean stowed the knife away.

The older hunter stared down at the demon as he began to untie her.

"Where's the angel?" they both looked to see Klaus run in with Elena in his arms, her body limp and her head hanging back.

"What the hell happened?" Dean demanded, running forward.

"She took her own dagger to her heart." Klaus said, laying her down on the floor.

He held up the bloody dagger that he remembered to grab.

"Son of a…" Dean said, reaching out to touch her waxen cheek.

Her lips were turning white.

"Is she…" Sam began.

"She's not dead!" Dean snapped before anyone could say anything else.

"Where's the angel?" Klaus repeated.

"Gone. Banished." Dean said, trying to figure out what to do.

Suddenly Elena's hand shot out and grabbed his. Her eyes flashed open and the pupils were fully dilated as she stared at him, choking on blood in her throat.

"Cl… eyes." she hissed out, blood leaking down her chin.

"Elena? What?" he said, stroking her cheek.

"Cl… se… your… eyes." she choked out.

He looked into her eyes to see a flicker of electric blue building in them.

"Everyone close your eyes!" he yelled, suddenly realizing what she meant.

Dean launched forward and shoved Klaus away and to the ground as Sam and Meg threw themselves to the ground with their hands over their eyes. Elena screamed loudly as the bright light filled the room. As soon as it faded, they looked up to see that Elena was no longer on the ground. She was standing by the fire alarm with blood still running down her chin. They watched as she pulled it.

"Crowley's coming." She said before collapsing to her knees.

"Elena?" Dean said, rushing to her and putting his hand on her back.

"He gave me his blood." She whimpered, her body convulsing as it tried to get the blood out.

She didn't know it but somehow she sensed that it would not go over well with the grace inside of her to have the blood of a creature in her. Her mouth suddenly opened and she coughed up the blood that was in her throat. It burned her mouth as it was expelled from her body but thankfully, her body was beginning to relax as it poured out of her mouth.

* * *

Crowley was walking down the hall with a glass of his best alcohol in his hand as he reached the female djinn's cell.

"Hello, sweetheart. Feeling chatty this morning, are we?" he asked, unlocking the cell. "Do hope so. Wouldn't want to harm a hair on that pretty little head. So, you ready to tell me all about your daddy?"

The creature whimpered just before the fire alarm went off, blaring through the hallways. Crowley looked up with a sigh.

"Hold that thought." He said, backing out of the room again and closing it.

He walked into the room to see that the demon whore was no longer on the table and his demon was dead beside it. He heard a click and looked to see Dean turning off the fire alarm.

"You should be ghoul scat by now." Crowley said to the hunter.

Sam suddenly rushed up from behind him and slammed a metal pipe over his head, knocking him into the room on his stomach.

"Really necessary?" the demon demanded as he stood and Dean and Sam advanced on him. "I just had this dry-cleaned."

He glanced around to see Elena leaning against a pillar with a pale face and a wiping off the blood from her mouth. Klaus was gone, sent off by Elena to make sure that Kol got everyone out all right.

"You don't look so hot, darling." He acknowledged before looking up at the ceiling where there was a devil's trap. "So, to what do I owe the reach around?"

Meg walked in, fully clothed now and with a smirk.

"Crowley." She said in greeting.

"Whore." He fired back.

"Okay, you know what." She snapped, clenching her fist.

Crowley choked out blood as he collapsed on his knees.

"The best torturers never get their hands dirty. Sam wants a word with you." Meg said.

"What can I do for you, Sam?" Crowley asked, wiping his mouth as he stood.

"You know damn well. I want my soul back." Sam snapped.

"And here I thought you just grew some balls, Sam." Meg said, surprised by the development.

"Well?" Sam asked, ignoring her comment.

"No." Crowley said simply.

"Meg?" Dean asked.

Meg grinned as she tortured him some more.

"I can't." he snapped out as he was on his knees once more.

"Can't or won't?" Sam demanded.

"I said 'can't'. I meant 'can't', you mop-headed lumberjack." Crowley shot back, glaring at him. "I was lucky to get this much of you out. Going back in there for the sloppy bits? No way. I'm good, but those two in there? Forget it."

He shook his head with certainty.

"How do I know you're not lying?" Sam questioned.

"You don't. But it doesn't change anything. I'm telling you. Sam, why do you want the thing back? Satan's got one juicy source of entertainment in there. I'd swallow a rag off a bathhouse floor before I took that soul. Unless you want to be a drooling mess." Crowley said, pushing himself to his feet again.

They all stared at Crowley.

"Sam, I hate to say it, but he's right." Meg commented, glancing back at him.

"Yeah, right. I get it. Thanks." Sam snapped, handing her the knife. "He's all yours."

"Whoa, what are you, crazy?" Dean said, grabbing the knife before Meg could. "He's our only hope."

"Dean, you heard him. He can't get it. He's useless." Sam replied.

Dean sighed before handing Meg the knife. She grinned and moved to step into the circle. Then she stopped and glanced back at them.

"You'll let me back out, right?"

Both Dean and Sam nodded. Meg looked at Elena for confirmation, trusting her more for some reason. It must have had to do with the fact that they'd literally fought side-by-side. She stepped into the circle and raised the knife.

"This is for Lucifer, you pompous little…"

Crowley didn't let her finish, taking her down in an instant and grabbing the knife. He threw it into the ceiling and it broke the devil's trap. He snapped his fingers and Sam and Dean suddenly flew into opposite walls before being pinned there. Then he lifted his hand and the knife flew from the ceiling straight into it.

"That's better." He glared down at Meg. "You don't know torture, you little insect."

Elena ran forward and his hand wrapped around her throat.

"You're not at full capacity yet, are you darling?" he asked, studying her face.

"Let me go, Crowley." She snapped, her hand on his wrist.

"Only because you asked nicely." He agreed, throwing her back into the pillar that she was leaning on.

She fell to the ground with a cry. Before he could do anything else, Castiel appeared.

"Leave them alone." He said, glaring at the demon as he held a burlap sack.

"Castiel, haven't seen you all season. You the cavalry now?" Crowley asked.

"Put the knife down." Cas said, setting the bag down.

"You that bossy in Heaven? Hear you're losing out to Raphael. The whole affair makes Vietnam look like a roller derby." Crowley said with a smirk. "Hey, what's in the gift bag?"

Cas bent down and pulled out a skull.

"You are."

"Not possible." The smile disappeared from his face.

Elena clambered to her feet and stumbled over to Cas' side.

"You didn't hide your bones as well as you should have." The angel said simply.

Crowley tucked the blade under his arm before clapping mockingly.

"Cookie for you."

"Can you restore Sam's soul or not?" Castiel demanded.

Crowley sighed, snapping his fingers and releasing Sam and Dean.

"If I could help out in any other…"

"Answer him!" Dean yelled angrily.

"I can't." Crowley answered.

Before anyone could say another word, Cas tossed the skull back into the sack and it suddenly caught on fire. Crowley yelled loudly as he burned up where he stood, leaving a pile of ashes with the knife on top. Dean walked forward slowly as Meg backed away with a panicked look. As soon as he picked up the knife, she vanished.

"Well, she's smart, I'll give her that. I was gonna kill her, too." Dean said, turning around to look at them.

"Course, I'd have given you an hour with her first." He said to Cas.

The angel's face betrayed his confusion.

"Why would I want that?" he asked.

Dean sighed, shaking his head.

Castiel turned to Elena.

"Are you all right?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

"I'm fine." She said hoarsely, holding up her dagger. "Though it would have been nice to know that this can hurt me too."

He stared at her apologetically.

* * *

They were all standing outside and Elena was talking to Klaus and Kol. Their siblings were fine and the vervain should pass out of their systems soon.

"Thank you for helping us, Elena." Klaus said, finding it easier to thank her this time around.

"No problem." She shrugged.

"I see what it is Elijah always ranted about with you. You are very noble. And compassionate." Kol commented.

She flushed and shook her head.

"Let me know when you get back to Mystic Falls safe, okay?" she asked, gesturing to the car that they'd found on the property and were now stealing.

They both nodded and she turned to walk back to the Impala where Sam, Dean, and Cas were standing, ready to take off.

"Thanks, Cas. Hadn't it been for you…" Dean trailed off, nodding at the angel.

Elena stood beside Castiel, looking up at him.

"Crowley was right." he admitted, glancing between her and Dean. "It's not going well for me upstairs."

"If there's anything we can do…" Dean began.

"There isn't." Cas interrupted him and Elena felt a stab of empathy in her heart as she heard the pain in his voice. "I wish circumstances were different. Much of the time I'd rather be here."

Elena sighed, ignoring the coldness that he tried to keep in his eyes and the stiff set of his shoulders that betrayed his status as a warrior. She pulled him into a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck. Cas stiffened even more for a moment before relaxing hesitantly and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Look, Cas, we know you got a steaming pile on your plate." Dean said as she drew away, still looking up at him.

Cas glanced over at Dean.

"There's no need for apologies. We're your friends." Dean nodded.

The angel looked at Sam and sighed.

"Listen, Sam, we'll find another way." he said.

"You really wanna help? Prison full of monsters. Can't just leave 'em, can't let 'em go." Sam said, nodding at the building.

"I understand." Castiel said before disappearing.

"He's right, you know?" Dean said, looking at Sam.

"About?" the other Winchester asked.

"About your soul. We'll figure something else out." Dean confirmed.

"No, we won't." Sam scoffed, shaking his head.

"Why, because Crowley said…" Dean began with a frown.

"You heard what Crowley said. And I heard what Cas said. Putting this thing back in would smash me to bits." Sam argued.

"We don't know that for sure." Elena protested stubbornly.

"You know what? When angels and demons agree on something, call me nuts, I pay attention." Sam snapped.

"You say this now? After we practically died trying to…"

"Exactly!" Sam interrupted him. "We almost got ourselves killed. I mean, how many times do we risk our asses for this? Enough's enough."

"Sam…" Dean sighed.

"I don't think I want it back." he said, turning away from them.

"You don't even know what you're saying." Dean said with a hint of hurt in his voice.

"No, I'm saying something you don't like." Sam said, glancing back at him. "You obviously care, a lot. But I think maybe I'm better off without it."

"You're wrong." Dean said, shaking his head. "You don't know how wrong you are."

"I'm not sure about that." Sam replied.

Elena watched with a devastated expression as Sam turned to walk away.

"Sam, don't walk away. Sam! Sam!" Dean yelled as he continued to walk.

She walked around the car to him and immediately gathered her into his arms.

"I…" he began.

"Shh. We'll figure it out, okay? We'll make it right." she assured him, her head turned as she watched Sam keep walking.

"Everything will be okay. We'll make it right."

* * *

**Author's Note: Review please! **

**Next chapter has Death in it as well as a big reveal for Elena, as I said up at the top. **


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, Nyssandria, RippahGoneWolf, RHatch89, JMHUW, slayerdiaries, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, diehardromantic, CherrySin, Commander Jack Sheapard, chiwi, xxPaige23xx, DrawingMyHeartOut, Hollywood17, and the guest for reviewing! Love you all and all of my faithful readers!**

**To the guest, I don't really know all that I'm going to do with Eve and purgatory yet so I can't answer you quite yet. Sorry!**

**A few things:**

**1. Elena's outfit is on my profile.**

**2. Two angels appear in this chapter, some of you might know who already.**

**3. At least four angels appear in the next chapter as well as a few other familiar faces.**

**4. There will be extended, fluffy Dean/Elena alone time in the next chapter.**

**5. Enjoy!**

* * *

Elena stared at Dean with wide eyes.

"I don't like this." she admitted.

"I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to like it." he replied, staring back up at her.

She shook her head and backed away.

"I can't do it." she said.

"You have to, Elena. This is our last ditch effort. After this… I have no idea what to do."

"I'm okay with the second part of the plan. It's the first part I disagree with." She said with a stressed expression, running her fingers through her hair.

"Elena, you know it'll be okay. You will bring me back." he assured her.

She sighed and went to sit by him where he was sitting on the bed, taking his hand.

"I would feel much better if it was me going." She said, stroking his cheek.

"Well that wouldn't make much sense, would it? You're the only one who can bring anyone back." he said.

Elena sighed and closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"I can't just kill you, Dean." She murmured.

"You wanna bring Bobby up to do it? I'm sure he wouldn't mind." He said jokingly and she let out a small laugh.

"No, I'm sure he wouldn't." Elena sighed.

She shook her head once more.

"Let's just get it over with."

She positioned herself behind him and he gripped the sheets.

"You're sure?" Elena confirmed.

"Positive." He agreed.

"Okay." She said, her heart pounding as she put her hands on either side of his head.

Suddenly she pulled away and scrambled around to kneel before him.

"Elena…" he sighed.

Dean was suddenly cut off by her lips on his.

"I love you." she murmured into the kiss.

"I love you too." He replied without breaking their contact.

Elena's hands came up to thread through his hair. Before he knew it, a loud crack filled the air as she wrenched his head to the side. A small whimper escaped from her mouth as he fell back onto the bed, his body lifeless. She climbed up beside him as tears ran down her cheek. It was something she never imagined having to do but Dean trusted her more than anyone else so she did it for him. Pulling his head into her lap, she mended his broken neck without bringing him back to life. Her hands stroked his hair as she leaned her hair back onto the headboard of the bed.

"You'd better hurry, asshole. You owe me so much." she managed to say through her tears.

* * *

Dean sighed as he looked down at the scene on the bed.

"I'll make it up to you." he said, knowing that she couldn't see him.

Then he turned and walked into the hallway.

"This better work." He said before chanting the words that Bobby had given him. "Messorum evoco qui me tetigit."

"Dean? What the hell?" a voice said from behind him.

He turned to see Tessa standing there with a furious expression on her face.

"What do you know? It worked." He said with a happy grin.

"I was in the Sudan! What's with yanking me ov…" she cut off, studying him. "Wait, why are you dead?"

"Tessa, I need a favor." Dean said with a pleading look.

"Oh, you're kidding." She scoffed, an unbelieving hint in her tone. "You died to ask me…"

"Tell your boss I need to talk to him." he interrupted her.

The reaper stared at him for a moment.

"No." she shot back.

"Please?" he asked.

"Where do you get the nerve?" Tessa demanded.

"Desperate times." He sighed.

"He calls us. We don't call him." she said, shaking her head.

"You make an exception!" Dean demanded, suddenly frustrated by her refusal to help him after he helped her get a town back to normal last time they saw each other.

"I can't." she said.

"Can't or won't?!" he snapped.

"Both!" she shot back, glaring at him.

"All right, Tessa. Thank you very much." They both turned to see Death standing there, dark suit and stick in hand. "Hello, Dean."

Tessa glanced back at Dean with an accusing look, as if he'd dragged Death there himself.

"I'm busy, Dean. Talk fast." The Horseman said, walking forward as Tessa moved to stand beside him.

"I have something of yours." Dean said, nervous all of the sudden as he got the same sinking feeling that he always did around Death.

"You mean my ring? I recall loaning you that temporarily." He said.

"Well, if you want it back…" the hunter began shakily.

"I'm sorry, you assume that I don't know where you've hidden it."

Dean stared at him with wide eyes.

"Now we've established you have hubris but no leverage, what is it you want?" Death questioned, staring at him with those cold eyes of his.

"Lucifer's cage. I figure you're one of the few people that can actually jailbreak it." Dean finally said.

"Do you?" he said.

"Sam's soul is stuck in that box." Dean informed the Horseman.

"I've heard." Death nodded.

"And our other brother is trapped in there, too. Michael rode him in." he continued.

"Dean, quit shuffling and deal." The powerful being sighed frustratedly.

"I want you to get 'em both out." Dean said quickly.

"Hmm." Death said, striding forward.

Dean remained where he was as the other male circled him.

"Pick one."

"What?!" he demanded.

"Sam's soul or Adam's." Death said, standing in front of him.

"But…"

"As a rule, I don't bring people back." he interrupted the hunter. "I might make an exception once, not twice. So... pick."

"Sam." Dean said instantly. "His soul has been in there for a year, and I understand that it's... damaged."

"Try flayed to the raw nerve." Death corrected him.

"Well, is there any way that you could, uh, I don't know, hack the hell part off?" Dean suggested with a shrug.

* * *

"All right, Dean, you've had your ten minutes." Elena said, positioning herself to revive him.

The light flowed from her hands into his chest and she stared at him, waiting for him to take that breath that let her know that he was alive. Nothing happened.

* * *

"Dean, Dean, Dean. What do you think the soul is? Some pie you can slice? The soul can be bludgeoned, tortured, but never broken. Not even by me." Death said.

"Well, there's got to be something." Dean said desperately.

"Maybe. Can't erase Sam's hell, but I can... put it behind a wall, if you will." The Horseman said.

"A wall." Dean said, furrowing his brow.

"In his mind… a dam to hold back the tide. Nasty, those memories. You don't want to know what they'll do to him. Believe me."

"Okay, uh, a wall. Sounds good." Dean nodded, liking the sound of this.

"But it's not permanent." Tessa threw in, her arms crossed over her chest.

"She's right." Death confirmed. "Nothing lasts forever. Well, I do, but..."

"Okay, so that's the choice… Sam with no soul, or Sam with some drywall that if or when it collapses, he's... done?" Dean questioned.

"Yes." He nodded.

"Do it." the hunter said without a second thought.

"I never said I'd do it." Death said, staring at him.

"Well, then what the hell have we been talking about?" Dean demanded, frustrated by the being's tricky words.

"Your prize. If you win the wager." He said, looking straight into Dean's eyes.

"Great. What's the bet?" Dean asked with a sigh and a slight roll of his eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes, Dean. It's impolite." Death berated him. "Now, when you fetch my ring, put it on."

"What?" Dean said, confused.

"I want you to be me for one day."

"Are you serious?" the human said, his eyes widening.

"No, I'm being incredibly sarcastic." Death said with a tilt of his head and a roll of his own eyes.

* * *

"Come on!" Elena said, pushing even more of her power into her hands.

Nothing happened still and she was beginning to panic. Was Death keeping Dean from coming back to life as punishment for summoning him?

* * *

"Take the ring off before the 24 hours are up, and you lose. No soul for Sam. Clear?" Death asked.

"Okay. Yes." Dean nodded. "But... but why?"

"Simple, Dean. Because…"

* * *

Elena sighed with relief when Dean's eyes flew open and he sat up, inhaling sharply.

"You couldn't have given me five more seconds?" he whined, looking over at her as he massaged his aching neck.

"Dean, you were gone for fifteen minutes." Elena said, her eyes wide.

"I was?" he questioned.

She nodded and pulled him in, embracing him tightly.

"Never ever make me do that again." She commanded.

"Yes ma'am." He breathed, holding her close to him.

* * *

"You what?!" Sam demanded as they all stood in the study.

Well, Dean and Sam were standing and facing each other. Elena was sitting on the couch with her legs curled underneath her and sipping coffee out of a mug. Bobby was sitting at the desk drinking a glass of whiskey with a look that said he was tired of the two boys fighting.

"Just hear me out." Dean said, putting his hands up.

"I heard Cas and Crowley when they said it would either kill me or turn me to jello, Dean! I heard enough!" Sam snapped.

"Death said he can put up a wall." The older brother said.

"A wall?" the younger brother said skeptically.

"Yes, yes, a wall that… that, basically, you wouldn't remember hell." Dean explained.

"Really?" Sam asked with suspicion.

"Really." he nodded.

"For good? Like a cure?" Sam asked to make sure.

Elena bit her lip, wondering if Dean would tell him.

"No, it's not a cure. It... he said it could last a lifetime." Dean said.

"Great. So, playing pretty fast and loose with my life here, don't you think, Dean?" Sam said, turning away to pace.

"I'm trying to save your life!" Dean yelled.

"Exactly, Dean! It's my life! It's my life, it's my soul!" Sam shouted back. "And it sure as hell ain't your head that's gonna explode when this whole scheme of yours goes sideways!"

"Just curious. I presume Death's not doing this out of the goodness of his heart. So what's your half of the deal?" Bobby cut in.

Dean sighed, his eyes evading Bobby and Sam's questioning looks.

"I'm sorry. I didn't get that." Bobby said, raising an eyebrow at Dean.

"I have to wear the ring for a day." He sighed.

"Why the hell would he want you to do that?" the older hunter demanded.

"Get his rocks off. I don't know. But I'm doing it." Dean said with certainty.

Sam shook his head, going to leave.

"Where you going?" Dean asked.

"Look, I hear you, all right? I get it. I just need a minute to wrap my head around it, all right?" Sam said, walking out of the house and into the salvage yard.

Elena looked up at Dean and he nodded. Sighing as she put her cup down, she closed her eyes and disappeared.

* * *

Sam stared down at the hole that was dug into the ground with his forehead creased. He heard footsteps and looked up to see Elena standing there.

"Looking for this?" she asked, holding up Death's ring.

A little bit of dirt was on her hands and he knew that she'd come out here and snagged the ring before he could.

He glanced back to see Bobby and Dean standing there.

"Just taking a walk." Sam shrugged.

"Sam. I'm your brother. I'm not gonna let you get hurt. I know what I'm doing here." Dean said, seeing through his lie and sensing his worry.

"What if you're wrong?" Sam asked.

"I won't let it go wrong." Dean assured him.

Sam stared at him before looking back at Elena, who nodded as she walked closer.

"Fine." He finally sighed.

"Fine? So, you're…" Dean trailed off.

"So, I'm trusting you here. Barely." Sam said.

"You sure?" he asked.

"You're the one with the compass, right? Just don't mess it up." Sam nodded.

"I won't." Dean confirmed.

Elena held the ring out to Dean as he walked up to her.

"Watch him." he muttered in a low voice that Sam couldn't hear.

* * *

"So, is this the part where you pull a gun on me and lock me in the panic room?" Sam asked as they walked back into the house.

He turned to face Bobby and Elena.

"Do we have to?" Bobby questioned.

"No. I guess Dean's got to do what he's got to do." Sam said, nodding.

Neither Elena nor Bobby really believed a word he said. After fighting tooth and nail to get Dean to give up on the soul thing, there was no way that he was giving up that easily.

"Guess we all do, kid." Bobby said.

* * *

Dean glanced around the salvage yard before sighing.

"Well, here goes everything." He said, putting on the ring.

Suddenly he was standing on a busy street that he didn't recognize.

"Wow." He turned to see Tessa standing there with a scowl. "They'll just let any slack-jawed haircut be Death these days."

"Well, you're all charm today, aren't you?" he said with a smirk.

"Let's be clear so that we get through this with a minimum of screw-up. I don't like this. And right now, I'm not crazy about you, either." She said, pushing past him to walk.

He followed her.

"This is your boss' idea, not mine." Dean argued.

"True. But you have a long history of throwing a wrench in everything, so let's just stick to the rules. Deal?" she asked, turning to face him.

"And the rules are?" he questioned.

"For the next 24 hours, you kill everyone whose number's up." Tessa said with a stern voice.

"Well, how am I supposed to know who to..."

"Kill?" she interrupted.

He nodded.

"I have a list." She said simply.

"Let me see." Dean said.

"No." he frowned at her. "You touch them, they die, I reap them. Are we clear?"

"Yeah, I guess." He said unwillingly, not comfortable with any female other than his girl telling him how it was gonna be.

"Remove the ring, you lose. Slack off, you lose. Got it?" Tessa said, staring him down.

"Yeah." He said, feeling utterly scolded for something he didn't feel he really did.

"Don't mess this up. It's not my job to be your damn babysitter." The reaper warned him.

* * *

Sam took the chance to slip out of the house when both Elena and Bobby were taking a quick power nap. Elena was a little tired because of how much energy she had to unload when she was trying to raise Dean and Bobby was just tired.

He was kneeling on the ground of the barn as he did the spell that he found in Bobby's book. He threw a match into the bowl and it flashed before heard a fluttering of wings. Looking up, he saw the angel standing in front of him.

"Sam... Winchester. This had better be good."

* * *

Elena sat up with a gasp, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"You're not wrong. There's another angel here." A voice said.

She looked up to see Ruby sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Were you watching me sleep?" Elena demanded, glaring at her.

"Not willingly. The boss dragged me here." Ruby said, nodding to where John was standing in the corner.

"Well I don't have time to deal with any of you today." Elena snapped, moving to stand up.

Suddenly, another figure was standing at the door.

"Hi… Elena." she said with a soft smile.

"Anna?"

* * *

"Why here's one for the list of dumbest things ever. Summon the angel who wants to kill you." Balthazar said with a smirk.

"Desperate times. I need your help, Balthazar." Sam said, staring at him.

"Interesting… since last time we met, you wanted to… what was it?" Balthazar said, walking around as he glanced at the barn. "Oh, yes, yes… fry my wings extra crispy."

"Well, that was a misunderstanding." Sam shrugged, turning to face him.

"Some misunderstanding!" the angel snapped, glaring at him and no longer amused.

"I need some advice." He said.

"Advice?" Balthazar said, raising his eyebrow at him.

"Angel advice." Sam explained.

"Well, then go ask your boyfriend." He suggested.

"Cas can't help me. I need to know if there's a spell or a weapon, anything that can keep a soul out… forever." The hunter said.

"Ohh. Balthazar said, his interest peaked as he stepped forward. "What's going on, Sam?"

"It's for me."

The angel stared at him for a moment before chuckling.

"Well. The plot thickens. Where's your soul, Sam?" Sam just stared at him for a moment. "Good God, no. It's not still... it is?"

"My brother found a way to put it back in me. I don't want it." Sam said.

"No, you don't." Balthazar confirmed. "No, no, cause Michael and Lucy are hate-banging it as we speak."

"Can you help me?" Sam asked.

"Oh, yes. The question is, will I?" he said.

"Set your terms." Sam said openly.

The angel regarded him, thinking for a moment.

"I'll do it for free." He decided.

"Free? Why?" Sam asked, confused.

"Well, you seem like a capable young man. I'd love to have you in my debt. And I have to say, I'm not a fan of your brother, so screwing him would delight me." Balthazar nodded with a grin. "Anyway, to business. The spell, yes. So, finding the ingredients are easy enough, but, uh, there's one tricky part, however."

"Okay."

"You need to scar your vessel." He said.

"Meaning what?" Sam asked.

"Meaning something that so pollutes it, it renders it uninhabitable. Calls for something very specific." Balthazar said.

"Great. What?" Sam asked.

"Patricide." The angel said with a raised eyebrow, seeing how the human would react to it.

"My dad's been dead for years." Sam scoffed.

"To be clear, um, you need the blood of your father, but your father needn't be blood. Comprende?"

Sam's face lit up with realization as he suddenly knew exactly what he had to do.

* * *

"Just so you know, when people die, they might have questions for you. Well, you know, not you, but death." Tessa explained as they walked up to a convenience store.

"You mean like, how did Betty White outlast me?" Dean asked, smirking.

She gave him an unamused look.

"'What's it all mean?' is popular." The reaper said.

"And am I just gonna magically know?" he questioned.

"No." Tessa said.

"Then what the hell am I supposed to say?" she just shrugged. "Oh, come on, give me something."

"Suck it up. Comes with the gig." She said as they walked in.

A robber in a beanie was threatening a cashier and his young son behind the register, a gun in his hand.

"Come on! Come on! Let's go!" the criminal yelled at the shop owner.

Dean started forward but Tessa stopped them.

"They can't hear you. They can't see you. Just let this play out." she said.

"Well, who am I taking?" Dean questioned.

"Wait and see." Tessa replied.

"Which one?" he demanded.

She just remained silent.

"You want me to shoot the kid?! Hurry up!" the nervous shop owner glanced up at the robber, drawing his son into his side. "Oh, you think I'm kidding? And don't forget the drawer under the register. Come on, move it! Let's go!"

The cashier pushed the bag off the counter and the robber bent to pick it up.

"You idiot." He growled.

The cashier suddenly pulled out a gun and shot the robber in the heart. The man collapsed to the ground, choking and sputtering on blood. Dean stared down at him.

"Hello? Tick tock." Tessa urged him.

"He's in agonizing pain, right?" he questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Uh, yes." She said impatiently.

"Give me a minute." Dean said.

Tessa sighed but remained silent. Finally Dean bent down and touched the robber's hand. When he turned, he saw the man's soul standing beside Tessa.

"Why?" he asked.

"Mostly because you're a dick." Dean informed him, finding the question far too easy to answer. "Enjoy the ride down, pal. Trust me… sauna gets hot."

Tessa gave him a look before walking the soul out of the room.

"That wasn't so hard." Dean shrugged, following them.

* * *

"Just what the hell are you doing here?" Elena demanded.

"For the same reason Ruby is here." She said, glancing at the demon.

"Redemption?" Elena scoffed.

"The boss says what I gotta do… I do it." Anna said.

"God wants you to help me. Why does he care so much? He never has before." Elena scoffed.

"What makes you say that?" John asked.

"You're kidding, right?" she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

He stared back at her.

"Whatever. Like I said, more important things to deal with." She said, skirting around Anna and walking out of the room.

* * *

Tessa glanced over at Dean as they walked up to an overweight man shoving down pizza.

"Call me crazy, but this smells like a heart attack." He commented.

Just on cue, the man let out a grunt and clutched his chest, falling over on the ground.

"Lucky guess." Dean said, touching his arm.

He turned to see the man standing next to Tessa with a sad look.

"Why?"

"You think maybe it was the extra cheese?" Dean asked, glancing at the unfinished pizza.

"Yeah." He nodded solemnly. "It was good, though."

Dean looked at him curiously.

"Is that a local place?" he questioned.

"Dean." Tessa sighed.

"Right. Uh, time to go, man. Sorry." Dean said.

"Wait." The man's soul said before Tessa could steer him away. "Will you tell me what it all means?"

Dean groaned internally, really hoping that the man hadn't asked that. Then he smiled proudly.

"Everything is dust in the wind." He said mysteriously.

"That's it?!" Dean's smile faded. "A Kansas song?!"

"Sorry. He's new." Tessa said apologetically.

* * *

Elena got downstairs just as she heard Bobby say something in the kitchen.

"Woke up and you were gone. Where you been?" he said.

"Just driving around. No biggie." Sam said, looking up as she walked into the room with a suspicious look.

"How about some poker?" Bobby suggested, glancing between them as they stared at each other, neither of them looking away with intense gazed.

* * *

"After you, boss." Tessa said, gesturing to the hospital room.

They walked in to see a father sitting on a bed, showing his sick daughter a photo album.

"That's you when we went to California. You were 6 then. God. We should burn that. You were adorable." He said, making the girl smile.

Dean's good cheer soured immediately.

"The dad or the kid?" he asked.

"Kid." Tessa answered, not bothering to be cryptic this time, knowing that Dean was not happy.

"Come on. What is she, thirteen?" he demanded.

"She's twelve." The reaper sighed.

"And that's...?" the little girl asked, pointing at a picture.

"That's your mom... when she was your age." The father said.

"This guy have any other family?" Dean asked.

"No, not really." Tessa replied.

"Well, this is awesome." He snapped, turning to walk into the hallway.

"What, you thought it was all gonna be armed robbers and heart attacks waiting to happen?" Tessa questioned, following him.

"She's twelve!" Dean yelled.

"With a serious heart condition." She informed him.

"Who's next on the list?" he asked, obviously in denial.

"Dean, you have to take her." Tessa said sternly.

"Says who?" he growled.

"Death."

"I'm death." Dean fired back.

"You know what I mean." Tessa said.

"Well, who tells him?"

"I don't know. It just is. It's destiny." The reaper said, shrugging.

"Give me a break. I've spent my whole life fighting that crap. There's no such thing as destiny, just like there was no apocalypse… just a bunch of stuck-up mooks who didn't want us human slaves asking questions. Well, I say the little girl lives." Dean said with finality.

"Do you know what's amazing? You don't actually buy a word you're saying." Tessa said, staring up at him.

"Yes, I do." He scoffed.

"Oh, really? So, all the times that you messed with life and death, they just worked out for you? It was just a beach party every time, huh?" she questioned.

"Well, I know this much… I'm Death, she's twelve, and she's not dying today."

* * *

Elena watched with a ramrod straight back as Bobby and Sam played a tense game of poker.

"Want a drink?" she finally asked, breaking the silence as she stood.

"No, thanks." They both said.

She sighed, walking to the fridge. John was standing beside it and Anna was next to him.

"We have to talk to you, Elena. It's important." the female said.

Elena didn't say anything, grabbing a bottle of water before walking back to the table and sitting once again.

* * *

"Medically, I can't explain it." the heart surgeon said to the father.

"So her heart just healed?" the man asked.

"Couple of times in your career, you see something you just got to call a miracle. All I know is I won't have to operate." The doctor said.

"Thank you. Thank you, doctor." The father said with relief as Dean and Tessa looked on. "You did it. You're gonna be okay." He said to his daughter.

They turned to walk out of the room and a nurse suddenly passed through Tessa, talking on the phone. The reaper froze and looked back at the woman.

"Hey, hon, guess what? I'm leaving. No, surgery was canceled." The woman said.

"Come on. We have more work here." Tessa said, her voice tight as she steered Dean away.

"Okay. See you soon." The nurse said.

* * *

Elena was in the bathroom when they finished the game.

"Pair of aces." Sam said, holding up his cards.

Bobby didn't take it personally, holding up his empty beer bottle.

"Want another one?"

"Yeah, sure." Sam nodded.

Bobby turned to look in the fridge as Sam grabbed a wrench. He loomed over Bobby and raised it to knock him out but the older hunter suddenly whirled around with a bat and knocked him out first.

"May have been born at night, boy, but it wasn't last night." He grumbled, going to get rope so that he could tie him up.

When he turned back around, Sam was gone.

"Not good." He muttered, glancing around. "Let's not do anything hasty here, Sam!" he called.

Elena hurried into the room and looked around the room with wide eyes.

"What the hell, Bobby? I was gone for two minutes!"

"Well that idjit tried to knock me out after one." He said, staring back at her.

Elena sighed, yanking him into the study. She handed him a shotgun and then dragged him to a closet, shoving him in.

"Stay." She said, pulling out her dagger.

She slammed the door shut and then ran off. After a few minutes of silence, an axe suddenly buried in the door.

"Don't say, here's Johnny." Bobby growled when Sam came into view.

"I got to do this, Bobby. I'm sorry. You shouldn't have cornered yourself." Sam said, not sounding regretful at all.

"I didn't!" Bobby shot back, pushing a button in the closet.

Sam suddenly fell through a trapdoor into the basement. At the top of the stairs, he saw Elena pull the door shut and lock it. He immediately grabbed a crowbar and ran up the stairs, trying to force it open.

"Reinforced steel core, titanium kick plate." Bobby's voice came form the other side of the door. "Get comfy."

Sam let out a frustrated noise, leaning back against the banister.

"What is this about, Sam?" Elena questioned.

"I just, uh...I have to do this." he said evasively.

"Says who?" Bobby demanded.

"If Dean shoves that soul back in me, think how bad that could really be. I can't let it happen, Bobby. I mean, it's not like I want to kill you. You've been nothing but good to me." the younger Winchester said.

Bobby and Elena exchanged two slightly panicked looks.

"So... what, demon deal or something?" Bobby asked.

"Spell." Sam replied.

"You're making a mistake, Sam." Elena informed him.

"I'm trying to survive." Sam replied.

"Dean's got a way to make it safe." Bobby tried to convince him.

"Oh, yeah, what, some wall inside my head that maybe stays up? Come on." the soulless hunter scoffed.

Elena shook her head, knowing that he wouldn't be convinced.

"If it works…"

"Yeah, what if it doesn't?" Sam asked, interrupted Bobby. "Dean doesn't care about me. He… he just cares about his little brother, Sammy, burning in hell. He'll kill me to get that other guy back."

"Look, I... I know how scary it is. But you know what's scarier? You right now. You're not in your right head, Sam. You're not giving us much choice here."

Bobby's speech was met with silence and he and Elena glanced at each other.

"Sam?" Elena said.

"Balls!" Bobby cursed before opening the door.

They both headed downstairs, shutting the door behind them.

"Ain't nobody killing me in my house but me. I don't want to blow your legs out, boy, but I will." He said.

They saw that the panic room door was slightly ajar.

"Do you smell something?" Elena asked, looking around.

"Like what?" Bobby said as he walked towards the panic room.

"I don't know. I can't place it." she mumbled, the smell bothering her.

"Dammit." Bobby cursed. "He's escaped."

Elena looked in to see that Sam escaped with a ladder leading to the vent.

* * *

"Oh, what, you gonna give me the silent treatment now? Really?" Dean asked as they walked towards the exit to the hospital.

Tessa suddenly stopped as they heard a flurry of activity.

"Damn it! I knew it!" she cursed, turning back to walk the other way.

"What?" Dean asked as they hurried into the emergency room.

A bleeding woman was being wheeled in on a gurney.

"Code 500, E.R. code 500, E.R." the EMT yelled.

"What's going on?" An orderly asked.

"Fractured spine, internal bleeding. Had a heart attack in the ambulance." The EMT explained.

"We need Dr. Owens!"

"He just left." A nurse said, running up.

"Call Owens. Tell him to turn around." the orderly instructed.

"Wait, that's..." Dean said, spotting the nametag.

It was the nurse that had been talking on the phone.

"You let the girl live. The nurse goes home early, gets in a crash she wouldn't have. And she needs the heart surgeon, and where is he?" Tessa said, facing him.

"You knew this would happen?" he said in an accusing tone.

"No. Just knew that you knocked over a domino." The reaper replied.

"She's in cardiac arrest." A doctor said, doing CPR on the nurse.

"Take her." Tessa said.

"What?" Dean demanded. "She's not on the list!"

"Everything you do has consequences. Do you want to set off another chain reaction?" she said, glaring up at him.

"She's got nothing to do with this!" he argued.

"Well, too bad, Dean. You put on the ring. Now do your damn job." Tessa commanded.

"Fine." He finally sighed after a staring match.

He reached out and touched her hand.

"She's crashing again. We're losing her. Clear!"

"Is that... am I..." Dean turned to see the nurse's, Jolene, spirit standing there with a devastated look.

"Yes. I'm sorry." Tessa said, her voice much more soothing now.

"But I'm..."

"So young." The reaper nodded. "Actually, you were supposed to live for many decades. Have kids, grandkids."

Dean felt guilt filling him and he knew that she was saying all of this for his benefit.

"Then why?" Jolena asked emotionally.

Tessa turned her gaze on Dean.

"Because he screwed up."

"You did this to me?" the nurse asked, pain in her eyes.

"Come on, Jolene. It's time." Tessa said softly.

"Wait. I'm sorry."

She didn't say anything and her and Tessa disappeared.

"Where is she? Where's my wife? Where is she? No! No!" Jolene's husband howled, running to her bedside.

Dean turned, walking to the little girl's room.

"A real vacation?" she asked, smiling up at her father.

"Yeah. I can take you to this one café, show you where I met your mom." he nodded.

"You saw what happened to the nurse." Tessa said from next to him. "Go and kill that girl, Dean. I tried to tell you what you already know. She's disrupting the natural order by being alive. You of all people know what that means. Chaos and sadness will follow her for the rest of her life. We tried it your way."

"Give me a minute." Dean said, catching sight of Jolene's husband stumbling out of the ER.

"What?" Tessa said, her eyebrows knitted together.

* * *

Elena and Bobby had gone their separate ways as they searched outside to cover more ground, something that she had a bad feeling about doing but it was necessary.

"Elena."

She turned to see Jess standing there.

"I can't listen to any of you right now! Can't you see what I'm dealing with!" she shouted.

"You have to Elena. It's important." Jenna was suddenly there after not being there for several months.

"Tell me after we get Sam under control. He's trying to kill Bobby so he's my main focus." She argued.

"Elena, don't you think that if we're all trying to get you to listen, it's pretty important?" Anna asked, blocking her way as she turned to walk off.

"I don't care. Not right now." She shot back, walking past.

Suddenly she sensed that Bobby was in trouble back at the house.

"Dammit." She snapped, closing her eyes and disappearing.

She reappeared in the kitchen and heard a clanging noise down in the basement.

"Sam!" she yelled, running for the stairs.

She ran down to see him dragging Bobby's unconscious body in.

"Sam stop it!" Elena exclaimed, running forward.

He suddenly whirled around and pulled out a lighter, flicking it on and throwing it to the ground. Elena gasped as a holy oil circle lit up around her. That's what she'd smelled earlier.

"Sam what are you…" she started forward but found that she was blocked from going anywhere.

"I thought that it would work." He said, backing away.

"Sam, don't do this!" Elena yelled, panicked as he lifted Bobby into a chair and began to tie him up.

"Sam!" she cried, tears stinging her eyes as Bobby was in trouble and there was nothing she could do. "Dean, come on." she prayed.

* * *

"Come on, man, pull the car over." Dean said from the passenger's seat.

Jolene's husband was driving and he was drunk.

"You're gonna get yourself killed. What are you doing? Pull the damn car over!" he shouted.

The man couldn't hear him.

"Stop the car. Come on, stop the car."

"Route 10 is still shut down..." the radio said.

"What are you doing?! Stop the car!"

"… from an earlier fatal crash. All traffic has to exit..."

"Son of a bitch!" Dean suddenly yanked off the ring and reached out, yanking the steering wheel to the side.

He yelled out in shock when he saw Dean suddenly appear.

"Hit the brakes!" Dean yelled at him.

The man didn't listen and they careened into a car on the side of the road, coming to an abrupt and messy stop. Dean groaned, sliding out of the totalled car, glad to see that the man was alive.

"Damn it." he sighed with defeat, looking down at his hand. "Tessa!"

He looked around at the empty street.

"You there?! Tessa?! I lost! Sam's screwed! You happy?! Least you can do is zap my ass back home!"

There was still no answer.

"Hello?! I lost the bet."

Dean glanced down at the ring in his hand and slid it on again.

"Sorry about your brother." Tessa said, sounding genuine as she walked towards him.

"Let's just go." he sighed.

"Go where, Dean? We're done. What are we…"

They were suddenly standing in the little girl's room.

"Unfinished business." He said.

"It's over. You took the ring off. Anyway, thought you wanted the girl to skate by." Tessa said as he walked to the bed.

"No one really skates by. Do they?" he said.

Dean glanced over at the sleeping man in the chair.

"You should say your goodbyes, man."

"Hey, honey. I must have dozed off." The man said once he woke up.

Suddenly a long flatline filled the room.

"Hilary?" he said, panicking. "Somebody!"

"I'm dead?" Dean turned to see the girl's spirit standing there.

"I'm sorry." He said softly, moving to stand beside Tessa.

"But what about my dad?" she asked, watching her father cry.

"He'll be fine." Dean said.

"Really?" the little girl asked, turning to look at him.

"I have no idea." He admitted.

"I-I can't just leave him. It's not fair!" she complained, emotional.

"I know." Dean sighed, squatting next to her.

"Well, then why?" she asked, turning to look at him.

"Because... there's sort of a… a natural order to things." he told her.

"Natural order is stupid." She said complainingly.

"Well, I agree with you there." Dean said, nodding as he stood again.

* * *

"Listen to me. You don't want to do this. Sam." Bobby said, looking over at Elena who was watching helplessly. "I've been like a father to you, boy. Somewhere inside, you've got to know that."

Sam walked over to him holding a knife.

"Well, that's just it." he said.

"Sam do not do it!" Elena yelled, her heart pounding furiously.

"Sorry." He sighed, raising the knife up high.

Bobby let out a panicked noise as he moved to bring it down. A hand suddenly shot out and intercepted it. Elena sighed with relief, her shoulder slumping.

"Hi, Sam. I'm back." Dean said, slamming his elbow into Sam's face and knocking him to the ground.

* * *

Dean glanced into the window of the panic room where Sam was chained to the cot. Bobby was down there with him and Elena was upstairs.

"I can't keep doing this, Bobby. I mean, what am I, gonna tie him up every time he tries to kill someone? And that's not gonna hold him. I mean, he's…"

"… capable of anything." Bobby agreed, rubbing his wrists where the rope had rubbed them raw.

"What am I supposed to do here?" Dean sighed.

"I don't know." The older hunter sighed, as lost as the younger one was.

Dean walked up the stairs slowly, finding Elena standing perfectly still in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked.

He walked up to see her staring at Death, who was sitting at the table.

"Dean, Elena. Join me."

He took her hand hesitantly and they walked to the table, sitting down at once.

"Brought you one…" he handed Dean a hot dog. "… from a little stand in Los Angeles known for their bacon dogs."

"Boy, what's with you and cheap food?" Dean asked, taking the hot dog.

"I could ask you the same thing. Thought I'd have a treat before I put the ring back on. Heavier than it looks, isn't it? Sometimes, you just want the thing off. But you know that." Death noticed that he wasn't eating. "Not hungry?"

"Look... I think you know that I flunked. So there. Oh, and by the way, I, uh... I sucked at being you." Elena rubbed his hand soothingly. "Really screwed up the whole natural order thing. But I'm sure you knew about that, too."

"So, if you could go back, would you simply kill the little girl? No fuss, no stomping your feet?" Death asked, looking at him.

Dean hesitated before answering.

"Knowing what I know now, yeah." He nodded.

"I'm surprised to hear that. Surprised and glad." The Horseman said.

Elena remained silent during this exchange.

"Yeah, well, don't get excited. I would have saved the nurse, okay? That's it." Dean said.

She knew what they were talking about as Dean explained everything to her. She knew it was killing him that the nurse died for his refusal to do what was the order of things.

"I think it's a little more than that. Today, you got a hard look behind the curtain. Wrecking the natural order's not quite such fun when you have to mop up the mess, is it?"

Dean scoffed, shaking his head as Death told him the moral of the story.

"This is hard for you, Dean. You throw away your life because you've come to assume that it'll bounce right back into your lap. But the human soul is not a rubber ball. It's vulnerable, impermanent, but stronger than you know. And more valuable than you can imagine. So... I think you've learned something today." Death explained.

"Want to know what I think? I think you knew that I wouldn't last a day." Dean said, turning to stare at him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I lost. Fine. But at least have the balls to admit that it was rigged from the jump."

Elena squeezed his hand meaningfully as Death stared at him.

"Most people speak to me with more respect." He said.

"I didn't mean…" Dean began.

"We're done here." Death cut him off, standing. "It's been lovely. But now I'm going to go to hell to get your brother's soul."

Elena and Dean both gaped up at him.

"Why would you do that for me?" Dean asked.

"I wouldn't do it for you. You and your brother keep coming back. You're an affront to the balance of the universe, and you cause disruption on a global scale." He said, staring down at Dean.

"I apologize for that." Dean murmured.

"But you have use. Right now, you're digging at something. The intrepid Detective. I want you to keep digging, Dean."

"So you're just gonna be cryptic, or..."

"It's about the souls. You'll understand when you need to. Now I want one more thing." Death turned to face Elena. "I want you to come with me."

Her eyes widened.

"Wait… I can…" she trailed off.

"If I say so… yes." He nodded.

Elena stood hesitantly, looking at Death's outstretched hand.

"You… won't kill me?" she asked hesitantly.

"Of course not. What good would that do me?" the Horseman said simply, looking exasperated with both her and Dean.

She glanced over at her lover, swallowing hard and nodding as she put on her jacket that was thrown across the chair.

"I'll be back." she sighed.

"Elena…" he didn't get to say anymore as she put her hand in Death's.

"I have to, Dean." She said, staring him down.

If this is what it took for them to get Sam's soul back, she didn't care whether Death took her straight into Lucifer's cage. He looked at her with an understanding expression.

"Wait… with Sam... is this wall thing really gonna work?" Dean asked, looking at Death.

"Call it 75%." he said before they disappeared.

* * *

**Seven Devils – Florence + the Machine**

Elena looked around as wind whipped her hair around her head. They were in a dark wasteland. The ground was dry and cracked beneath their feet and the sky was filled with dark clouds and lightning was flashing along with the thunder that was rumbling loudly. She looked over at Death, who looked perfectly calm. He stared back at her as if he was gauging her reaction. Her heart pounded as she looked around at the barren landscape that seemed to go on forever.

"This… this is hell?" she said, not at all expecting this.

Where was the fire and brimstone? Where were the screaming souls that were described in Dante?

"This is not all of hell, this is a level of hell. This is where the cage is, hidden away so that no one can find it except for those who know where it is." Death said, walking forward and swinging his cane along by his foot.

She followed him, finding it very strange that keeping close to Death himself was her best chance for survival.

"Have you been to the cage before?" Elena asked, looking up at him as they walked.

"I haven't ever had the need to go, no." he said, glancing over at her.

She fell silent as they walked, looking back at the land that stretched behind them and feeling like they were going nowhere.

"Why did you bring me?" she finally spoke again after a few minutes of silence.

"You need to know things, things that Dean himself is not ready to know." Death said.

"You can't expect me to keep things from him." Elena said, her defensive side immediately flaring up.

He looked over at her, an eyebrow raised slightly. Her instincts told her to look away and apologize before he smote her right there but instead the stupid Winchester part that lived in her after being around them so much stared back at him unapologetically.

"When you know the things I intend to tell you, you will realize why discretion is wise." He said, coming to a stop.

Elena looked around and her eyes widened. Carved into the ground around them was a huge pentagram. The ground seemed to hum and rumble beneath their feet just in this one spot, standing in the exact middle of the symbol.

"This is it?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Yes, this…" he gestured around at the pentagram. "… is an insurance to keep any demons away from the cage who wish to get to the being who lives inside."

Elena's brow furrowed as she looked around and then back at him.

"But Crowley… he said that he got Sam out of the cage." She said with confusion.

He simply gave her a knowing look before crouching down and pressing his hand to the ground.

"He senses that we're here. He especially senses you." Death said, glancing up at her.

"Great, that's all I ever wanted in life. Lucifer having an Elena radar." She said sarcastically.

She was surprised when he smirked as if he actual found her snarky comment a little bit funny.

"Unfortunately, you will have to remain here, Elena. The cage is no place for you." he said, straightening up.

"You're just leaving me here?" she asked, looking around.

"Well it's not as though you'll be running off anywhere, will you?" he said.

Elena watched as he disappeared just as a clap of thunder startled her. She looked around, sighing as she kicked at the ground with her hands twisting together.

"I wonder how long taking a soul from the cage of Lucifer is supposed to take? Should I have brought a book?" she muttered to herself.

Then she looked around and let out a high-pitched, crazy sounding giggle.

"I… am in hell. I am standing over Lucifer's cage. Death brought me here but I'm not dead. What the fuck is going on with my life?" she wondered aloud, running her fingers through her hair.

"Has it really taken you this long to question where your life has led you?" she turned to see Death standing there closing the latches on a briefcase that he hadn't been carrying before.

"That's… that's Sam's soul?" she asked.

"Yes and it is a pathetic little thing." He said, looking up at her.

"Will it… can you still put it back in him?"

"Of course. With the wall in place, it should not bother him too much. But the wall must remain in place."

Elena nodded solemnly.

"Now, about the matter of the cage and the younger Winchester brother." He said, looking down.

"What about him?" she questioned, her eyebrows knitting together.

He looked at her, regarding her for several long moments.

"I think it should be obvious that the little tick who pretends to be King of Hell is not the one who pulled him out." Death said.

"So who did?" she asked, afraid of the answer.

"That is information you will have to discover for yourself. It also might be of interest to you to discover that Lucifer is alone." He said.

Elena stared at him for a moment, turning the information over in her mind several times. It took a while for the implications of that statement to finally occur to her.

"Michael." She said, her eyes widening. "Where is he?"

"That is the question, isn't it? And if he's out of the cage, why hasn't he struck you and those brothers down where you stand?" he wondered as if he knew the answer, which Elena was certain that he did.

Elena stared at him warily.

"Is he… not allowed?" she said hesitantly.

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"You'll have to ask him yourself when you see him again." He said, holding his hand out to her.

"You mean… I've seen him? Since he came out of the cage?" she questioned before taking it.

He rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

"Of course you have."

It suddenly occurred to her and she felt a chill run down her spine. Of course it was him.

"There is another matter. Something I require of you." he said.

"What?" she asked warily.

"You have done many things, Elena, saved many people and that is all right. Except for the fact that you yourself have interrupted the balance of nature. You have resurrected more people than you should have. I made my peace with guardians and the fact that they would not allow their charges to die before their purpose was fulfilled. What I did not agree to was you bringing others back to life. Jo and Ellen Harvelle are two of many examples." He said.

"I… I'm sorry but… I couldn't just let…"

"You could have and you should have. Those souls were mine to take, Elena. You circumvented Fate and no one is meant to do that." Death said.

"What are you going to do?" Elena asked.

"It's not what I'm going to do. It's what you're going to do. You owe me souls, Elena."

"I won't kill people for you." she said, stepping away from him.

"Not people, one being. That's all I want. You need only kill one being for me and our debt will be satisfied. In fact, you need only kill one being and any future souls you seek to save will not become a black mark on your record against me. One single being." He said.

"Wh.. who?" she asked hesitantly.

Death smirked.

"Fate." He said.

"Fate?" Elena asked hesitantly.

"Yes. She has been bothering me to wipe you and the Winchesters off of the face of the earth for months and I am tired of it. She thinks she has a measure of control over me because she has power and she has threatened to put chains on me more than once. She also wants you and your hunters dead so that will give you an extra push." He said.

"How will I kill her?" she asked.

"You'll know when the time comes. I promise that you will come across her." he said.

Elena stared at him for a moment before nodding. It bothered her to be agreeing to this but Ellen and Jo's lives were at stake as well as the Winchesters' lives.

"Okay." She agreed hesitantly.

"Good, now that's settled." He reached out his hand for her to take.

She reached out, her hand shaking as she placed it in his.

"Don't… take me back. I need you to take me somewhere else. Somewhere that I can be alone." She said carefully.

Death nodded as if he was expecting for her to make this request. They appeared in the field behind Bobby's house, pretty far out so that they wouldn't know that she was there.

"Thank you…. for getting Sam's soul." She said, looking up at him.

He looked at her, tilting his head to the side slightly.

"You really are a curious creature. No wonder you attract such fascination from everyone who comes across you." he said.

"I hear that from everyone." She sighed frustratedly.

"Well you know that I am not trying to flatter you nor am I trying to get you on my side. I do not need you on my side. I am simply stating a fact. Your influence is so great, Elena Gilbert, that you could have the world if you wanted."

She lifted her head, looking at him as she was unsure of how to respond to that. In the next moment, once she blinked, he was gone. Elena sighed and turned, looking up at the bright blue sky that was so different from the sky she'd seen down in hell.

"Michael!" she yelled as loudly as she could, her head thrown back and her eyes blazing.

"Hello, Elena." she turned to see Michael standing there in the young John Winchester's form that he'd been taking for months now.

* * *

"Bobby!" Dean yelled, running down the stairs to the basement. "Open the door."

"What happened?" Bobby questioned, standing.

"Now!" Dean instructed.

Bobby quickly opened the door as they heard Sam yelling. Dean looked around, wondering where Elena was and panicking when he didn't see her anywhere.

"Get away from me! Don't. Don't!" Sam shouted.

Death laid his cane on the bed before sitting beside Sam and opening a bag. A bright light flowed out of it.

"Now, Sam, I'm gonna put up a barrier inside your mind." Death said.

"No, don't touch me." Sam said, looking at him fearfully.

"It might feel a little... itchy. Do me a favor… don't scratch the wall. Trust me… you're not gonna like what happens."

"Please. Don't do this." he pleaded.

Death slowly took his soul out of the bag and Dean and Bobby recoiled away from the bright light.

"No, no!" Sam turned his head to look at Dean pleadingly.

"You don't know! You don't know what'll happen to me! Dean, please!" he begged.

"No! No! No!"

Death suddenly shoved his hand, soul and all, into Sam's chest. He screamed and writhed on the bed as Dean and Bobby winced. When Death withdrew his hand, Sam collasped back on the bed, unconscious.

"The soul is in place." the Horseman said, closing the bag and standing, grabbing his cane.

"Where's Elena?" Dean demanded.

"She requested a moment alone. I'm sure she'll be along soon." Death said before disappearing.

Dean looked over at Bobby, who looked just as freaked out as he felt.

* * *

**Author's Note: Review please! Please please please!**

**Go to the top author's note for mini spoilers/teasers if you didn't already read them.**

**HAPPY EASTER!**


	16. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, DrawingMyHeartOut, RHatch89, RippahGoneWolf, xxPaige23xx, Nyssandria, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, CherrySin, JMHUW, diehardromantic, chiwi, Commander Jack Sheapard, Nicole0203, and the guest for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. It might get a little confusing in this chapter but let me tell you one thing in preparation, Elena is not lying to Dean. Let that sit in your mind while you read.**

**2. I'm doing most of this chapter out of Elena's POV, for a reason. See the above comment because they are connected.**

**3. READ THIS! To any and all Doctor Who fans, I'll give you a spoiler for a future chapter through a private message if you can tell me one of the several Doctor Who quotes I use in this chapter. It's sort of a fun scavenger hunt cause I was bored. It's not a one reviewer thing, I'll do it for everyone who gets it right. The quotes are all from the reboot but all seven seasons are fair game.**

**4. You might not be a big fan of angels (again) after this chapter. Sorry, gotta have some angst, right?**

**5. Outfits (a lot for this chapter) are on my profile.**

* * *

Elena didn't have words. She had no idea what to say. Now that she knew, Michael no longer had any mask on his face. His cold eyes were in place and his mouth was set in a firm line. Instead of wearing normal Winchester clothing, he was wearing a black suit with a white button down shirt and no tie.

"Hello Elena." he nodded solemnly at her.

She knew that she should tread carefully. After all, he was still an archangel that could smite her with one look.

"You son of a bitch." She murmured instead, her eyes blazing.

"I understand that you should be upset. But there are reasons…"

"Screw your reasons! Why have you been appearing to me? Why don't you sound like the other angels when you disappear? What are you doing out of the cage?" she demanded.

She heard a familiar sound behind her and turned to see Gabriel there.

"You… did you know about this?" she demanded.

"Elena." he sighed, holding his hands up.

"Why the hell didn't you tell us?" Elena shouted, fury radiating from her.

"Let me explain." Gabriel said.

She glared at him and pressed her mouth into a thin line.

"I can't tell you how he got out of the cage."

She scoffed, turning away.

"Michael has been watching you… protecting you." he said quickly, gaining her attention again.

Elena squinted her eyes slightly, finding it hard to believe that it was really Gabriel saying these words.

"Why?" she growled out.

"Something's happened. It started when Sam was pulled out of the cage but it got worse when Michael was yanked out. We didn't know it would happen." Gabriel said.

"What happened?" Elena questioned.

"The cage… it's… malfunctioning." He answered.

* * *

"Where is that girl?" Bobby asked worredly.

"I don't know. She's not answering her phone. Death said she wanted to be alone." Dean said, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Well maybe we should…"

They were cut off with the sound of flapping wings. Cas appeared in the middle of the room facing Dean.

"You called." He said.

"Yeah can you, uh, can you do something for us?" Dean asked, feeling guilty for calling Cas down yet again.

The angel looked exhausted but he nodded anyways.

* * *

"Well?" Dean asked as Cas came out of the panic room rolling his sleeves back down.

"His soul is in place." the angel nodded.

"Is he ever gonna wake up?" Dean questioned.

Castiel sighed, facing away from him.

"I'm not a human doctor, Dean." He answered.

"Could you take a guess?" Dean requested.

"Okay." Cas turned on him, an angry glare on his face. "Probably not."

"Oh, well, don't sugarcoat it." he scoffed, surprised by Cas' sudden hostility.

"I'm sorry, Dean, but I warned you not to put that thing back inside him." he shot back.

"What was I supposed to do? Let T-1000 walk around, hope he doesn't open fire?" Dean defended himself.

"Let me tell you what his soul felt like when I touched it. Like it had been skinned alive, Dean. If you wanted to kill your brother, you should have done it outright."

Cas looked around all of the sudden as if he was looking for something.

"Where's Elena?" he asked.

"Not here." Dean said, not particularly wanting to add to the angel's anger by telling him that he let Elena go off into hell with Death.

Cas stared at him for a moment before disappearing, leaving Dean alone in the basement.

* * *

A cold chill ran down her spine and her eyes widened. She glanced at Michael to see that his face hadn't broken from its emotionless state.

"What do you mean, malfunctioning?"

"It's not going to hold up for much longer." Michael informed her.

She turned her head and glared at him.

"Well didn't you build it? Can't you fix it?" she demanded, advancing on him.

He shook his head.

"No one can."

"It started when Michael was thrown in the cage, actually. It was never meant to hold two archangels. That already had it bursting at the seams. Then they were pulled out. But the final straw was Death." Gabriel said.

"Death?" Elena said, frowning even more.

"Think of it as a rip in the side of the cage. Every time someone reached through, it got bigger. But Death was the most powerful being to reach through. Before, we might have had up to twenty years before the cage fell apart." Gabriel explained.

"And now?" she said, her heart pounding dangerously.

"We don't know. It could be anywhere from six months to five years. But it will break open at some point. And Lucifer…"

"He'll escape." Elena said, turning to look at Michael. "That's what you were trying so desperately to tell me this whole time. You were going to tell me not to let Death get Sam's soul back."

"We would have had more time to ready ourselves for Lucifer's return." He said simply.

She looked over at Gabriel.

"And you? Would you have told me to let Sam's soul stay in the cage? To let him continue suffering? To let Dean continue suffering?" she snapped.

"Elena you don't understand…"

"I understand perfectly! You try to pretend like you're different. Hell you might even try to be different but you're no different at all. You're willing to sacrifice any of us as long as you get what you want. Did you even hear my prayers? Did you hear me begging every night to help us with Sam?" she demanded, rounding on her archangel, the one she thought she knew so well.

"I heard you." Gabriel said, having the decency to sound ashamed.

"You do realize that you are closer to being one of us than you are to being one of them." Michael said, making her turn her head and glare at him.

"I will never be like you. If I end up like you, I might as well destroy myself because your existence must be miserable with how much you don't give a shit about anything! Fuck your plans and fuck your destiny! You can shove it up your ass! If you ever mess with one of my boys again because you're too afraid to face your own family, I swear to God I will kick your ass if it kills you and me both." Elena threatened, her eyes murderous.

Michael looked like he would say something but he closed his mouth, remaining quiet. Elena stepped away from both of them, shaking her head and trying to calm herself.

"Get away from me and don't come back for a very long time." she said, her voice shaking with red hot anger as she spoke.

"Elena…" Gabriel sighed.

She didn't say anything or even look at him. She just turned away, walking back towards the house as she tried to figure out what she was going to tell Dean.

* * *

Dean sighed as he sat at the desk across from Bobby, who immediately poured him a drink.

"Like my daddy always said, just 'cause it kills your liver don't mean it ain't medicine." The older hunter said, sliding it across the table.

Dean nodded and took it, glancing back at the door with concern etched on his face.

"Sam still asleep?" he asked, trying to take Dean's mind off of Elena's extended absence.

Dean took a drink before answering.

"Yeah."

"He'll wake up." Bobby assured him.

"Yeah." Dean repeated, not sounding so sure after what Cas told him.

"Dean, he's been through how much? Somehow, he always bounces back." the other man said.

"He's never been through this." Dean sighed before catching sight of a newspaper article sitting in front of Bobby.

"Job?" he questioned.

"Might be." Bobby said, understanding Dean's need to distract himself.

He slid the printout over to Dean, which read **"SMALL PLAN CRASH KILLS TWO".**

"Can I help? Send me to the library? Anything?"

"Couple goes up in a light plane. Wreckage was just found in the woods." Bobby explained.

"Couple of Buddy Hollys?" Dean shrugged. "Doesn't really seem like News of the Weird."

"Pilot was found seventeen miles away, flambéed. Girl's just gone. No body, no nothing." He said.

Dean looked a little more convinced.

"Okay, I'm not changing the channel." He agreed.

"Dean." A new voice said.

Dean set his glass down on the desk as him and Bobby turned to see Sam walking into the room. He stood slowly, concern and hesitation on his face.

"Sam?" he said, studying his brother's face.

He didn't get to say another word as he was suddenly wrapped in his little brother's embrace. Dean sighed, immediately relaxing as he knew now that this was his brother. This was his Sammy.

Sam pulled away, nodding at him and patting his arm before moving to Bobby, grabbing him in a hug as well.

"Good to see you." Bobby said once they separated.

"Wait. I saw you…" Sam grasped Bobby's arms, looking down at him. "I… I felt Lucifer snap your neck."

He missed the wide-eyed looks that both Bobby and Dean gave him.

"Well, Cas kind of…"

"Cas is alive?" Sam interrupted Bobby, sounding relieved.

"Yeah, Cas… Cas is fine. Sam, are you okay?"

"Actually, um... I'm…" he was interrupted by the sound of the door opening.

They all looked to see Elena walking in, a weary look on her face. As soon as she looked up, though, her entire countenance changed. Her eyes widened when she saw Sam and her shoulders straightened. At first, Dean had to work to recognize her stance. Then he realized that it was a defensive stance. She hadn't realized that he was back to being their Sam again and he was probably standing way too close to Dean and Bobby for her comfort. Then she looked into his eyes, searching them deeply.

"Sam?" she said, moving into the house.

"Elena." he said, a slight smile on his face.

Suddenly her face broke out into a grin that lit it up. She rushed forward without a second thought and threw herself into his arms, allowing him to lift her off the ground.

"Hey." Sam said, laughing.

Dean could see tears building in Elena's eyes as she squeezed him tightly.

"How are you? Are you okay?" she asked, her concern coming out once he set her on her feet.

"I'm actually kinda hungry." He said, looking around at them.

* * *

They were all gathered in the kitchen now. Sam was quickly eating a sandwich while they all drank beer.

"So, Sam..." Dean finally broke the silence.

"Yeah?" the younger Winchester asked.

"What's the last thing you remember?"

Sam looked up, glancing between all of them with a furrowed brow.

"The field. And then I fell." He said, shrugging.

"Okay. And then?" Dean questioned.

"I woke up in the panic room." he said.

"That's it? You really don't remember…" Bobby began as Elena frowned slightly.

"Let's be glad. Who wants to remember all that hell?" Dean cut the older hunter off.

Sam looked between all of them with a questioning look.

"Well, how long was I gone?" he asked.

"About a year and a half." Dean answered, glancing at Elena, who looked worried.

"What? I was downstairs f…" Sam's eyes were wide. "I don't remember anything. So, how'd I get back? Was it Cas?"

"Not exactly." Dean said, glancing away from his little brother.

Sam put down his beer, staring at his older brother.

"Dean, what did you do?" he demanded, his voice accusing as he knew there was something.

"Me and Death…"

"Death?! The horseman?" Sam cut him off, panicked.

"I had leverage. It's done." Dean said confidently.

Elena bit her lip, not wanting to ruin the moment just yet. She didn't know if she'd ever be able to tell Dean that he had no idea what consequences were coming from them getting Sam's soul out of hell.

"You sure?" Sam questioned skeptically.

"It's over. Slate's wiped." Dean nodded.

"Well, isn't this just neat and clean?" Bobby commented sarcastically.

"Yes, it is… for once." Dean shot back, staring at the older man.

SAm looked between them before glancing back at Elena, who was lost in space as she repeated every word of her conversation with Michael and Gabriel in her head.

"Is there anything else I should know?" he asked.

Dean hesitated before shaking his head.

"No." he said.

Elena snapped out of it and saw that the boys were nearing the bottom of their bottles.

"Another beer?" she asked, picking them up and breaking the silence.

"Uh, yeah." Sam said, looking up at her.

Dean simply nodded and she walked to the fridge to get them one.

* * *

Elena leaned her head back into the water of the shower, her eyes squeezed shut. The whirlwind of everything that happened that day went through her mind. She let the scalding hot water run over her body for a few more moments before turning around to switch it off. She climbed out, drying off quickly before wrapping the towel around her. When she walked out into the bedroom, Dean was sitting on the bed messing around with the amulet that she'd taken off to take a shower.

"Where were you?" he asked, looking up at her.

Elena glanced back at him, her eyes moving out of focus for a second before she was back paying attention to him. She turned and began rifling through her clothes.

"I was talking to Gabriel." She said, pulling out clothing to throw on.

Dean nodded, opening his mouth to say something.

"Where's Sam?" she asked as she pulled on the outfit.

"He's sleeping." He replied. "Why did Death want you to go with him?"

Elena sighed, sitting next to him.

"He wanted to warn me… said I'm messing with the proper order of things by bringing back people other than you and Sam after they've died. People like Jo and Ellen."

"He's not…" Dean said, his eyes widening.

"He said he'd let them live. It was a just a warning for the future." She said, assuring him that Death would not kill Ellen and Jo.

"Why did you talk to Gabriel?" he asked.

"To check and see if this wall thing was going to work on Sam. He was bound to know something about it" she answered, shrugging.

"And after months of calling he came now?" Dean asked skeptically.

"I think that he knew I was with Death. He lectured me a little." She answered.

Dean sighed, shaking his head.

"At least we have Sammy back." he said.

"Yeah." Elena nodded, smiling slightly.

* * *

Bobby was under his car messing with the engine when they walked, Dean holding two beers, one for him and one for Bobby, as Elena held one of her own.

"Hey." Dean kicked his foot and the older man slid out

He stood, taking one of the beers from Dean and sitting at the table with them.

"How is he?" Bobby questioned.

"He's, uh... he's good. Really good. Better than I could have hoped." Dean nodded.

Bobby glanced at Elena with a raised eyebrow and she stared back with confusion at the skepticism in his eyes.

"Uh-huh." The older hunter said.

"What? Why the poopface?" Dean asked, frowning at him.

"I'm glad he's better. I really am. But... that kid went straight-up Menendez on me not two days ago. And now it's all just... erased? Sorry. I'm having a bit of a hard time even looking at him." Bobby said.

Elena glanced at Dean, seeing a flash of annoyance in his eyes.

"It wasn't Sam." he said defensively.

"Well, maybe it wasn't all Sam, but it was him, Dean." Bobby replied.

"Well, what do you want to do, Bobby? We tell him everything?" Dean demanded, his voice reminding Bobby of the danger in that.

"No. Just wish I could, that's all." He sighed.

"Yeah, but if we start throwing that crap at him, we don't know what's gonna happen. It could… it could crack the wall."

"I know. I know." Bobby nodded before taking a drink.

"So, you know what? As far as I'm concerned, it's a gift horse, and I'm not looking for teeth. I'm sending Death a damn fruit basket."

"He's gonna find out, Dean." Elena sighed regretfully.

Dean looked at her with a furrowed brow. It was true, they were never lucky enough to skate by on anything so why would this time be any different?

"She's right." Bobby said. "One way or another, someone'll tell him, or he'll figure it out on his own. He's not dumb. He should it hear it from us."

"Can we just leave it alone for the moment, please?" Dean requested.

Bobby put his hands up in surrender.

"Okay. But you better prep for the B side, cause when Sam realizes we're shining him, it ain't gonna be cute." The other man warned Dean.

Dean glanced at Elena and she nodded, leaning against him with her head on his shoulder.

* * *

A few hours later, they were getting ready to go out to figure out what was going on with the plane crash. Bobby was going with them and they'd left Sam a note letting him know that they were going out on a hunt.

"Sam still asleep?" Bobby asked as they threw stuff into the backseat of the Impala.

"Yeah, let him rest. Elena'll pop back in later to see if he's okay." Dean answered as they walked around to get in the car.

"Call me from where?"

They all turned to see Sam standing there fully dressed and looking ready to go.

"Oh. Uh, there's this thing in Oregon." Dean said, surprised to see Sam up and around.

"Great. I'm in." he said, stepping forward.

"Whoa, whoa. You just got vertical." Dean put a hand on his chest to stop him.

"Exactly. I'm up. I'm good." Sam said, shrugging.

"Well, a few more days of crap cable couldn't hurt." The older brother said, sounding unsure.

"Right." Sam scoffed. "Because that's what you did when you got back from hell."

Dean regarded him for a moment before glancing at Elena. She shrugged and nodded.

"All right. The four of us." Dean said, nodding.

"Oh, you three go on ahead. You got this covered." Bobby said, stepping away from the Impala. "I, uh, forgot I promised that idjit Rufus I'd work the phones for him, so..."

"You sure?" Dean asked.

Both he and Elena knew better. Bobby was avoiding Sam and they really couldn't blame him for it.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You three enjoy catching up, okay?"

They nodded at him and watched as he walked off.

"What was that?" Sam questioned, looking confused and concerned.

"One part age, three parts liquor." Dean answered evasively as they climbed into the car.

* * *

"Uh, you got it, officer. Thank you. You too." Sam said into the phone.

Elena was fast asleep in the back as Dean drove down the dark road towards Oregon.

"So, get this… besides the crash, there were two other disappearances in town this week." Sam said, looking over at Dean.

"Really?" the older brother questioned, getting more convinced that this was a case.

"Yeah, last weekend, a college girl vanished from her apartment. On the seventeenth floor. Then, three days ago, another girl didn't make it home from school."

"They know each other?" Dean said.

"No. No connection. Just young and female, like the plane-crash girl." Sam replied.

"What would disappear a girl out of the sky, anyway?" Dean wondered.

"Good question." Sam said.

There was a moment of silence and Sam glanced in the back to see Elena curled up on the seat, a peaceful look on her face.

"So you never even tried, huh?" he said, looking over at Dean.

"Tried?" Dean said, confused.

"To go live a life... after. You do remember you promised that, right?" Sam reminded him.

A grimace formed on Dean's face as he glanced in the rearview mirror at Elena.

"Yeah, I remember." He admitted.

"So, why didn't you try?" Sam asked.

"What makes you think I didn't?" Dean asked, glancing over at him.

"Cause look at you. Look at this. Look at Elena. You're exactly the same. Both of you."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Dean sighed.

Silence filled the car again and Sam turned to look out the window, disappointment filling him.

"We were out for a year, me and Elena."

"A year?" Sam said, looking back over at his brother with a frown.

Dean nodded.

"So then what?" he asked.

"Didn't work out." Dean said simply before reaching out to turn up the music.

* * *

When they arrived at the motel, Elena was just waking up. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and rubbed them. As they climbed out of the car, she glanced around the parking lot.

"I'll go check us in." Dean said, kissing her lightly before walking off.

She looked over at Sam and smiled at him.

"I'm really glad you're back." she said.

He grinned back, leaning against the Impala.

"Dean, uh… Dean told me you took a year off." Sam said, looking down at his feet.

Elena's smile faded and she nodded.

"Yeah we did." she said.

"Why did you come back to this life? He didn't tell me."

Elena bit her lip and leaned against the car next to him. He looked over at her with sad eyes.

"Don't give me those big wet eyes, Sam. It's life. Just life. That thing that went on when you weren't here."

"I'm here now." Sam said.

"And life is still going on. We have a lot to deal with. Going back is just… impractical." She shrugged, unable to keep all of the sadness out of her voice.

Sam gave her a sympathetic look as they heard footsteps. They both glanced up as Dean walked to them with a key in his hand.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yep." Elena nodded, moving to grab her bag out of the trunk.

* * *

They walked up to the door of the house, Elena between Sam and Dean. Sam reached out and knocked on the door. A young woman opened it, looking at them questioningly.

"You're, uh... Penny Dessertine's sister, right? Diane?" Sam said as they held out their ID's.

"Mm-hm." She nodded, looking at them warily.

"Uh, we'd just like to ask you a few questions." Sam requested.

"Look, the cops already came by. I'm tired." the female asked. "So, if you don't mind…"

Elena opened her mouth to reassure her but Sam beat her to it.

"I… I understand." Sam stopped her from closing the doors with warm, open, puppy-dog eyes. "Really, I do. I know how hard this must be. We'd just like to figure out what happened. This will be quick. I promise." He said in a soft, sympathetic voice.

"Okay. Fine. Come in." Diane gave in, stepping aside.

Dean gave Elena a glance, both of them agreeing that their Sam was back with his mojo intact.

"Penny was very shy. To herself. Not at all what you'd call adventurous." She said as she led them into a very pink bedroom.

"What, like flying through a lightning storm in a two-seater?" Dean asked, glancing at her.

"She was terrified of that thing. She just did it for Stan." Diane said.

"Stan?" Sam questioned.

Elena was glancing at the bookcase when she spotted something. She made sure the woman wasn't looking before she slid the book out of the shelf and into her purse.

"They were just starting to get serious. She didn't want to seem, you know... not interested. I just wish I'd told her to stay home. We don't even have a body to bury." Diane said emotionally, tearing up.

* * *

Elena and Dean walked into the motel room holding food and beer for their night of research.

"Hey." Sam said, glancing up from his computer.

"What do you got?" Dean asked as Elena pulled the burgers and salad for Sam out to separate among them.

"Uh... well, looks like those other two missing girls both baked cookies for the lord." Sam informed them.

"What is that? Code?" Elena asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No. Church choir, bake sales, promise-ring clubs—the works. They were good girls. But Penny wasn't even a Christian, so…"

"I have another theory. Penny's diary." Dean said, pulling out the book that Elena had stolen from the house.

"Did you steal that from her room?" Sam said, furrowing his brow.

"Nope." Dean said, smirking.

Elena flushed slightly and Sam looked at her.

"Yeah, I stole it." she admitted ashamedly, handing him his salad and a beer.

Sam shook his head.

"You've corrupted the purest of us." He accused Dean.

"She was corrupted a long time ago." Dean defended himself, sitting down with his burger as Elena grinned at their banter. "So girl-nappings. What if it's not about religion, what if it's about purity?"

"You mean you think they're all…" Sam broke off, avoiding the word.

"Virgins, Sam. Virgins." Elena said, rolling her eyes as she sat down as well, munching on her fries.

"Penny was twenty-two." he said skeptically.

"Yeah, with a pink room." Dean scoffed.

"So?" Sam shrugged.

"And stuffed teddy bears." Dean continued.

"Fine. But you really think…"

"I've decided I'm going to give Stan my most precious gift." Dean read from the diary in a breathy, girly voice.

Both Elena and Sam stared at him. Elena was frozen with a fry halfway to her open mouth. He looked back at them with a questioning look.

"Wow. That sounded really creepy coming out of your mouth." Sam informed him.

"I think I delivered it." Dean shrugged.

"You know, you… you could have led with the diary. You know? Anyways, let's say you're right. Fine. Who would want virgins?" Sam asked, opening his beer.

"You got me. I prefer ladies with experience." Dean said with a smirk.

In the next few moments, several French fries went flying at his head along with promises of the lack of 'experience' he was going to be getting for a while. Sam watched, laughing, as Dean pouted and Elena glared at him.

* * *

A ringing pierced the dark motel room and Dean and Sam both jerked awake. They reached for the phones on the bedside table to see who it was but neither of them found it. They heard a soft voice and looked up to see that Elena had already answered the phone. Dean glanced around, confused. She was fully dressed unlike the way she had been when they went to bed.

"We'll be there soon." She said before hanging up.

Turning to face the boys' questioning looks, she stared at them innocently.

"What?" she questioned.

"Why weren't you sleeping?" Dean mumbled.

"I wasn't tired. Another girl got attacked. She wasn't taken, though. She's at the hospital." She said, switching on a light with a sympathetic look.

They both groaned, sliding out of bed to put their FBI outfits back on.

* * *

"It happened so fast." The young woman said.

Her face was bruised and scratched. She looked terrified as she spoke to them.

"It's all right, Melissa. What came at you? You can tell us." Sam said in a reassuring tone.

"It… it looked like a...a giant bat." Melissa's eyes glanced between all of them, measuring their responses. "You think I'm making it up, right? That's what the other man said."

"Well, I'm not the other man." Sam said, getting her attention back on him.

Elena and Dean were standing a little bit behind Sam.

"It came right at me. It was huge. I swear. That's how I got this."

She sat up and they all leaned forward as she pulled the gown down on her back to reveal large gashes that were stitched up. All three of them grimaced as they could imagine how painful they were.

"So, it attacked. And then what happened?" Sam asked as Melissa sat back.

"I don't know. I passed out, and when I woke up, it was gone." She informed them.

"Is there anything else you can think of? Anything you can tell us, even if it doesn't seem important?" Elena asked, walking forward a bit to stand beside Sam.

"Well, my ring got lost. Or else that thing stole it, if that makes any sense." Melissa said, looking down at her hand.

"What kind of ring?" Sam questioned.

"Gold. Promise ring." She explained.

"Promise ring. So, uh... from, like, a church? Like… like a purity ring?" Dean asked.

Elena bit her lip and Sam sighed, knowing what was coming next.

"Yeah. Why?" Melissa asked, confused.

"I got to ask. Uh, Melissa... look, nobody is, uh, judging anybody here, okay? Believe me. But... should you really be wearing that ring?" Dean finally managed to ask.

"Well, I… I mean, I… I am…"

"Really?" Dean interrupted her, raising his eyebrow skeptically.

They all stared at her, waiting on her true answer.

"Matt Barne didn't count!" Melissa exclaimed.

* * *

"So, what, you think Batman tried to rape her?" Sam asked as they walked out of the hospital.

"Well, he does carry a lot of rage. But he rejected her because she was already dehymenated, huh?" Dean questioned.

"You think?" Sam said, frowning at him.

"I think it just goes to show that being easy's pretty much all upside."

Elena glared at him, bringing up her purse and smacking his arm with it several times.

"Ow ow! Stop it!" Dean complained, jumping away from her as she continued hitting him. "You're supposed to guard me and heal me! Not hurt me! What, do you have bricks in that thing?"

Sam couldn't keep the grin off of his face at watching their interaction.

"So, what kind of thing likes virgins and gold?" he asked as they walked back over to him, Dean rubbing his shoulder with a pout.

"P. Diddy?" Dean shrugged as they approached the Impala.

"You know, it's comforting." Sam said, nodding as he opened the door for Elena.

"What's that?" the other brother said.

"I died for a year, came back, and you're still not funny." He said.

Elena let out a peal of laughter at Dean's disgrunted look.

"Shut up. I'm hilarious." He grumbled, getting into the car.

* * *

Elena was lying on the bed with an arm thrown over her eyes. She heard Sam typing on his computer and Dean brewing some coffee but she wasn't paying attention to either of them. She had a fuzzy feeling in her head. It had been bothering her for a while now. It was why she couldn't sleep. It felt like someone had been in her mind but she didn't think that anyone had been.

"This can't be possible." Sam said, interrupting her reverie.

"Try me." Dean said as she sat up on the bed slowly to look at them.

He handed her a cup of coffee and she smiled gratefully at him.

"Um, I googled fire, claws, flying, stealing virgins, and gold, and it all takes me to the same place." Sam sighed frustratedly.

"Where?" Dean asked.

"World of Warcraft fansites." Sam informed them.

Dean and Elena exchanged a clueless look.

"I don't know what that means." He said.

"Dragons."

Both of their eyebrows flew up and Dean smirked.

"See? Told you. Not possible." Sam nodded.

"Actually, it might be." Dean said, shrugging.

"How? In what reality?" the younger Winchester questioned.

"It's been a strange year." Dean shrugged. "We should get a second opinion."

"Yeah?" Bobby answered the phone that Dean put on speaker.

"What do you know about dragons?" he said, setting it on the table.

"What? Nothing." The older hunter said, confused.

"Seriously." Dean said.

"Well, they're not like the Loch Ness monster, Dean. Dragons aren't real."

Elena glanced at Sam, who was frowning at the phone. He glanced up at her.

"The Loch Ness monster is real?" she mouthed.

"I don't know." Sam mouthed back, shrugging.

"Could you make a few calls?" Dean asked, not noticing the silent communication between his lover and his brother.

"Can we go look?" Elena mouthed.

"We have to deal with the dragons first." Sam replied, still mouthing.

"To who? Hogwarts?" Bobby said and they could hear his eyes rolling.

"Humor me." Dean requested.

"Fine." Bobby said.

"You're a gentleman and a scholar." Dean said.

"Thanks Bobby!" Elena and Sam both said.

"Yeah, yeah." The older man grumbled before hanging up.

Sam grabbed John's journal and he began flipping through it.

"Dad never wrote anything about dragons. I promise. I'd remember if I read The Neverending Story in there." Dean said, leaning back as Elena walked behind him, putting her arms around his neck from behind and laying her chin on his shoulder.

"Hey, did we hunt a skinwalker lately?" Sam suddenly said, looking up at them.

They both froze, staring at him for a moment.

"Doesn't ring a bell. Why?" Dean said.

"I don't know. Just... déjà vu or something. Are you sure? I could have sworn…"

"You got to remember, your eggs are still a little scrambled, right? But, yeah, I'm sure." Dean nodded.

Elena tried not to shift uncomfortably. She hated having to lie to Sam but it was necessary if they were going to keep his wall intact.

"All right. Yeah. Never mind." Sam sighed.

Suddenly Dean's phone began to ring and they looked down to see that it was Bobby. Dean picked it up, confused at why the other hunter would be calling back so soon.

"Hey, Bobby. What do you got?" he said into the phone.

"Can't believe she didn't jump right to mind. Dr. Visyak. Medieval Studies, S.F.U." Bobby said.

Elena picked up a pen, writing it down on a piece of paper.

"Dr. Visyak, S.F.U." Dean repeated for her. "Got it. Thanks."

He hung up the phone and stood.

"All right. We're going to San Francisco, figure out how to kill these things." Dean said, gesturing between him and Elena. "You figure out where they are."

"W-wait. D-did Bobby say where they like to park?" Sam asked as they stood to gather their stuff.

"No." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Great. Back to the lore." Sam sighed.

"Which says what? That they live in Middle-Earth?" Dean scoffed.

"No. Caves." Sam said.

Dean stared at him for a moment.

"You're such a nerd." He said, taking Elena's hand.

"See you in a few hours, Sam." she said, smiling at him before they disappeared.

* * *

Elena and Dean glanced up with wide eyes at the large house as they approached it. He whistled lowly.

"Dr. Visyak is doing well for herself." he said, reaching out to pressed the intercom button.

"Yes?" a female voice said over the speaker.

"Dr. Visyak. My name is Dean Winchester." He began.

"Office hours are Monday and Friday." She said.

"Bobby Singer sent me." There was a moment of silence. "Hello?"

He looked at Elena with a questioning look and she shrugged. The door opened and they both looked to see an attractive blonde middle-aged woman there.

"Hi." Dean said.

Her eyes glanced between them.

"I'm Dr. Visyak." She said, holding her hand out to Elena first, eyeing Dean suspiciously.

"Elena Gilbert." The younger female nodded at her, smiling.

"Dean…"

"Winchester. I heard." The woman said, shaking his hand as well. "Come on in."

They walked in after her and through the house into a sort of study.

"Bobby Singer. Tell him something for me next time you see him." Dr. Visyak said, turning to face them.

"Hmm?" Dean questioned, looking at the artifacts on her mantle.

"Actually, just kick him in the jewels." Dean's eyes shot to her. "That's more poetic."

Elena bit back a smile as his eyebrows went up.

"No love lost between you two, huh?"

Dr. Visyak chuckled.

"No. Just the opposite." She said.

"Oh?" Dean and Elena said at the same time.

Her eyes glanced between them.

"That's his story to tell. He's the idiot." She informed them.

The professor stared off into space for a second before gesturing for them to sit down.

"So, what's this about?"

"Well, uh..." Dean glanced at Elena and she nodded, wanting him to say it. "Dragons."

"Really?" she said, walking forward with her interest obviously peaked.

"What, no twelve-sided-dice joke?" Dean questioned.

"We can joke about them because they've disappeared. But they aren't funny. At all." She said, sitting down as well.

"Well, one just flew in stateside." He informed her.

"Are you sure?" Dr. Visyak questioned skeptically.

"It fits the lore." Elena told her.

"But how? I mean, why? It's been seven hundred years." She said, her brow furrowing.

"Banner crop of crazy all the way around these days, doc." Dean said.

She glanced up at them.

"So you want to know how to kill it." the professor guessed.

"That's right." he nodded.

"Well, you need a blade." She informed them.

"What kind of blade?" Elena asked, tilting her head to the side.

"One forged with dragon's blood."

"So you need one to kill one, but you got to kill one to make one. How does that work out?" Dean asked, sounding frustrated just thinking about it.

"Well, there aren't many dragon swords around anymore. Five or six, tops, worldwide. I mean, there's the sword of St. George, and, of course, there's Excalibur. And there's…"

"You know a lot about this stuff, don't you?" Dean cut her off, looking slightly impressed but also like he was cursing their luck that an extremely rare weapon was just the one they needed.

"Well, I sure as hell better. I have one in the basement." Dr. Visyak said with a slight smile.

They both perked up at her words.

"You have one." Elena said, sounding like Christmas arrived.

"Finding it took two decades, countless hours, and some really bad sex with an eastern European ambassador, but, yeah." She explained, leading them downstairs.

She opened a double set of doors to reveal a sword embedded in a boulder. Dean scoffed, chuckling as they walked in.

"That is not real." He said, circling the thing. "Is that real? Is it Excalibur?"

"No. This... is the Sword of Brunswick. Love of my life." Dr. Visyak breathed, sounding reverent to the thing.

"So, uh, what's with the cement shoe?" Dean asked.

"You know, binding sword to stone used to be all the rage. To protect them." She said.

"How do we get it out?" Elena asked, putting her hand on the stone as she walked up to it.

She let out a laugh, looking between them.

"Well, come on. You know this one." They stared at her. "We need a brave knight who's willing to step up and kill the beast."

"Right." Dean said, nodding as he walked around to the edge of the boulder.

Elena could already see the gears in his head turning and she knew where this was going. She stepped back to stand next to the other woman.

"All right, well, I'll, uh, give it a whirl." He said, smirking proudly. "Do you mind?"

"Oh." Dr. Visyak gestured to the sword in a 'be my guest' motion.

He stepped up onto the platform, putting one foot on the stone and wrapping his hand around the hilt of the sword. It didn't budge at first and he cleared his throat, changing his position and trying again, failing once again. He glanced at them quickly before putting both hands on the sword. Elena was fighting to keep the amusement off of her face but Dr. Visyak wasn't bothering to hide her amused grin. Dean gave it a good tug and ended up losing his footing, completely sliding off of the platform and the rock and onto the the ground. Both of the females stepped forward, fighting the urge to laugh.

"You okay?" Dr. Visyak asked.

"Never better." Dean answered as he stood.

He wiped his face, breathing heavily, as he stepped back up to the boulder. He put both hands on the hilt once again and, this time, braced both feet against the rock. Elena could already see this going to a bad place and she covered her mouth to hide her grin. He grunted and his face turned red as he pulled and tugged each and every way that he possibly could. After a few long moments of him trying, he slid off with a grunt.

"Oh, son of a bitch! That's really on there!" he said, finding his footing and stumbling away.

Elena reached out and rubbing his shoulder comfortingly, laughing quietly at him.

"Yeah, afraid so." Dr. Visyak nodded.

"Well, I have another idea." He said, facing her.

"What?" the professor asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Well…" he shifted uncomfortably. "… you're not gonna like it."

* * *

"Sam. Where's Dean?" Bobby asked once he answered Sam's call.

The younger brother was sitting in the motel room.

"Hey, um... he went to go see your friend with Elena. So, look, I'm trying to figure out where this thing lairs up. Uh, little help, maybe?" he asked.

"What are the parameters?" Bobby said.

"Caves, basically. But there's nothing around for miles." He answered.

"So, less literal, then. What else you got local that's cold, dark, and wet?"

"Huh. Well, um... there's no subway lines. Sewers." Sam realized, looking at the maps. "That could be it. Thanks."

"All right." the other man said.

"Wait, Bobby. Wait. Um... you okay?" he asked, his eyebrows knitted together.

"Yeah, of course." Bobby answered. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Besides the way you been acting and talking? Nothing." Sam said. "Is there something I should know?"

"No. All you need to know is where Godzilla's holed up." Bobby said simply.

"Well, Bobby, what happened this last year?"

"It had its moments. No more than usual. It's got nothing to do with you, Sam. How could it?" he said.

"Right. Course." Sam nodded.

"Call me if you need anything." Bobby said.

"Ye…" Sam couldn't get the word out before the other man hung up the phone.

He set it down on the table and sighed, closing his eyes.

"Castiel, um... I'm back. So, if you got a minute..."

"Sam." he looked up to see the angel standing there. "It's so good to see you alive."

"Yeah." Sam nodded. "You too."

Cas began to walk towards him, his arms raised a little. Sam took a step back and sat down, causing the angel to stand there dejectedly for a moment.

"Um... look, I… I would hug you, but…" Sam stammered.

"… that would be awkward." Castiel finished for him, backing away.

"Um... was a crazy year, huh? I just talked to Bobby. He… he told me everything that happened." Sam said.

"Frankly, I'm surprised that you survived. I was begging Dean not to do it." Cas said, leaning against the wall.

"Yeah. No, I… I… I can understand that." Sam nodded.

"You know, it's a miracle it didn't kill you." the angel informed him.

"Yeah. Yeah, it's a miracle, all right." he agreed, no idea what the other being was talking about.

"So, how does it feel?" Cas asked.

"What?" Sam questioned looking up at him.

"Well, to have your soul back, of course." He said as if it were obvious.

Sam's gaze flickered with a hint of devastation but Castiel didn't notice.

"Right. Y-you mean cause I was walking around with no soul." He breathed. "Uh... Really good, Cas. I'm real good." He nodded.

The angel looked relieved.

"You know what? I'm… I'm just hazy on a few of the details, though. Um... you think maybe you could... walk me through?" Sam asked hopefully.

* * *

"You know what? I… I don't like this at all." Dr. Visyak said to Elena.

Dean was out at the Impala gathering the necessary supplies to blow up the boulder so that they could get the sword out. Elena gave her a sympathetic look.

"I'm sorry." She said regretfully. "It's just the only weapon we have and girls are disappearing."

"Is there anything else?" the woman asked.

Elena shrugged, looking around.

"I don't think so." she answered.

Dr. Visyak looked her up and down.

"You try." She said, gesturing to the sword.

"Me?" Elena laughed, shaking her head. "Trust me, I am not the chosen one."

"Please? I'd preferring over blowing the damn thing up." Dr. Visyak pleaded.

She sighed, walking to it and looking at this.

"It is not going to work." She warned the woman before reaching out and grabbing the hilt.

Elena bit her lip, pulling on it as hard as she could. Apparently, she overestimated her strength and understimated her ability to pull the sword out of the rock. She flew backwards and landed on her ass with the sword in her hand, unbroken and undamaged even though it was a little dusty.

"What the…" she said, wincing at the sudden pain in her tailbone as she stared at the sword with wide eyes.

Dr. Visyak looked relieved as Dean came walking in holding the explosives.

"What the…" Dean imitated her sentiment as he glanced at the rock and then at Elena.

He looked shocked and dejected.

"How the hell did you get that out?" he demanded, pointing at her and she knew that his pride might have been a little wounded.

"I'm sure you loosened it." she said, smiling slightly.

* * *

"This looks a little rusty." Sam commented, holding the sword.

"It's what we got. All right?" Dean said grumpily, taking it away.

Sam looked surprised at his snappy attitude.

"He's just a little upset cause I pulled the sword out of the rock. I think it hurt his pride a little. I can't be sure. So if you could tell him his hair looks good… or something." Elena whispered as he walked away.

Sam chuckled slightly.

"I heard that!" Dean said, turning to narrow his eyes at her.

She smiled innocently, grinning at him.

"Where are we on the caves?" he asked, shaking his head.

"Nowhere. Sewers, on the other hand... here. Check this out." Sam pointed at a map hanging on the wall.

"So, two of the disappearances happened within a mile of here. So I think we start there and work our way around." he said.

"Awesome. Who doesn't love sewers?"

Elena wrinkled her nose, wishing that they could avoid the sewers.

"Let's go." Dean turned to walk towards the door holding the sword.

They looked to see that Sam was about to say something but he remained quiet for some reason.

"What is it, Sam?" Elena asked.

"Nothing." He said, shaking it off. "Uh, yeah, let's go."

* * *

"Ugh! God. Just when I get used to a smell, I hit a new flavor." Dean said disgustedly.

Elena glared over at him and Sam, cursing the day she met both of them as her stomach was continously lurching.

"Dude, we have been here for hours. There is nothing. I think the lore is off. Hey, what if, uh... what if dragons like nice hotels?" the older brother suggested.

Sam rolled his eyes and noticed something with his flashlight as they rounded a corner.

"What is that?"

"What?" Dean said, looking over at it.

He knelt on the ground and shined his flashlight on it as well. It was a pile of gold.

"Holy crap." Dean said, picking up a gold watch from the pile. "Okay, maybe there are dragons here."

Sam and Elena began to walk forward but Dean remained behind, pushing gold into his pockets.

"Wait." Sam said, noticing what he was doing.

"Dean... not now." Elena sighed, shaking her head at him.

Sam glanced ahead and saw something else.

"Check this out."

They folloed him to an altar that was at the end of the hallway. A leather-bound book sat on it along with other occult-like objects.

"A little arts-and-crafty for a giant bat, right?" Sam said, glancing at them.

"Hello? Is someone there? Hello?" a muted voice suddenly rang out.

They looked at each other before walking in the direction of the voice. Elena caught sight of a bunch of girls trapped under a grate.

"Hey." She said, nudging them and squatting down to look at the grate covering them.

"We're gonna get you out." Dean assured the terrified looking females.

"Quick. He's coming back." one of them said and Elena recogized her to be Penny.

She turned just in time to see Sam dragged backwards by a dragon. She was pleased to feel her protective instinct flare up again as she lurched forward. Everything was back to normal. She seized the back of the dragon's shirt and yanked him off of Sam, pulling her knife out. He smirked at her and went to attack her. Meanwhile Dean was facing off against another dragon that ran up, the sword in his hand.

"Where do you think you're gonna stick that?" the dragon asked tauntingly.

Dean slashed out and cut the dragon's arm, causing the wound to hiss and burn. The dragon screamed and pressed his hand to the wound.

"Where did you get that?" he demanded through gritted teeth.

"Comic-Con." Dean replied.

The creature suddenly knocked the sword out of his hand and it fell between the grates. His hand glowed brightly as he approached Dean. Elena managed to knock her dragon off of it's feet and looked to see Sam helped Dean out by slamming a metal bar over the other dragon's head. She fell to her stomach on the ground and reached between the grates, causing the sword to fly up into her hand. She jumped up, tossing the sword to Dean, who was waiting.

"For Camelot!" he yelled dramatically, making Elena roll her eyes as he shoved the sword into the other dragon's chest.

He ripped it out as the dragon fell to the ground, dead. The other one ran at him and knocked the sword out of his hand. Elena didn't hesitate before running forward and throwing him off Dean. The dragon took one look at them and then turned to run.

"Thanks for saving me. I'm really glad that worked. Those would have been terrible last words." Dean said, breathing heavily.

* * *

"I feel like I still smell like sewer. Do I still smell like sewer to you?" Elena asked.

They were outside at Bobby's house enjoying the, surprisingly, warmer weather in February. It was a rare day and it was expected to get freezing cold again. They were in the covered area and Dean was sitting on the bench. She was lying across it with her head in his lap as he fiddled with the gold he'd stolen from the sewer.

"You smell great." He assured her.

They heard footsteps and both looked to see Sam walking up.

"Hey, Sam. Ask me what time it is." Dean said with a grin, holding up one of the watches.

"Why don't you cut to the chase and just roll in it?" Sam asked with a slight smile, sitting down.

"I rarely have wealth." Dean shrugged, laughing proudly.

"Dean..." Sam sighed, his smile suddenly fading.

"Yeah?" Dean said, focusing on his twice stolen wealth.

"I am so... so sorry. I can't even begin to say." The younger brother said emotionally.

Elena sat up slowly, alarm bells going off in her head at his words.

"For what?" Dean asked, looking at him as he was oblivious to what Sam was talking about.

"You know what. I'm sorry to both of you." he said, looking between them with a devastated look in his eyes.

Realization dawned on Dean's face.

"Did Bobby?" he questioned, putting the gold down and pushing it away with slight anger laced in his voice.

"Cas." Sam informed him.

"Cas." Dean said, shaking his head. "Friggin' child!"

Elena glanced at him before looking back at Sam worredly.

"You should have told me, Dean." Sam said.

"You weren't supposed to know." Dean fired back.

"What I did? To Bobby? To you two? Of course I should know." Sam responded.

"Sam, Death didn't just shove your soul back in, okay? He put up the great wall of Sam between you and the things that you don't remember. And trust me when I say that the things you don't know could kill you. That's not a joke." Dean informed him.

"All right. But I have to set things right. Or what I can, anyway." He said.

"Sam… it wasn't you." Elena said softly.

"You know, I kind of feel like I got slipped the worst mickey of all time... and I woke up to find out that I had burnt the whole city down." He said, shaking his head. "And you can say it wasn't me, but... I'm the one with the zippo in my pocket, you know? So I'm not sure it's that cut and dry."

Dean sighed, running his hands down his face as he searched for what he did in this situation. He'd really tried to convince himself that it was going to be so clean and now… it was clear that it was still all messed up.

"Look, I a-appreciate you trying to protect me. I really do. But I got to fix... what I got to fix. So I need to know what I did." Sam said desperately.

"But you don't know how dangerous that could be." Dean replied.

"What would you do?" Sam said.

Dean remained quiet, staring at him.

"Right. Same thing." Sam said confidently.

"Sam..." Dean sighed, searching for words to say.

They were interrupted by Bobby walking in.

"Something I think you ought to see." The older hunter said solemnly.

"Now, as near as I can figure it, this dates back around the fourteenth century." He said as they gathered around the desk.

He had the leather-bound book sitting on there that they'd taken from the sewers.

"What language is it?" Sam asked, squinting at the writing.

"Da Vinci code. Real obscure Latinate. Gonna take me my golden years to translate it all. Oh, and, uh, FYI… that ain't paper." Bobby said, glancing at Dean as he thumbed through the book.

"What is it?" Dean asked, glancing up at him.

"It's human skin." The older man replied.

Dean made a face and pulled his hand away, wiping it on his jeans.

"Okay. I'm fairly clear on this first bit. It basically describes this place. It's like the backside of your worst nightmares. It's all blood and bone and darkness. Filled with the bodies and souls of all things hungry, sharp, and nasty."

"Monsters?" Sam questioned.

"It's monsterland. According to this, it goes by many names, most of which I can't pronounce, but I'm thinking you know Purgatory." Bobby said, looking between all of them.

"Purgatory? Awesome. Well, that is good to know. So, you're saying that these, uh, dragon freaks were squatting in the sewers and reading tone poems about purgatory?" Dean questioned, pouring himself a drink.

"Oh, no, no, no. They're reading an instruction manual." Bobby corrected him.

"What?" Elena questioned.

"Yeah. If you're nuts enough to want access to a place that gnarly, this book will show you how to open a door."

"Door to purgatory. Well, I know a demon who would have loved to have known about that. So, how do you open the door?" Dean asked.

"Ask Cloverfield. I'm pretty sure he's got that page." The older hunter replied, flipping to an area with a ripped out page. "It gets worse."

"Worse?" Sam said doubtfully.

"This ain't talking about how to take a vacation over there. This is all about opening a door to let something in."

"Bring something here. What?" Elena questioned.

"I'm working on it." Bobby sighed, sitting at the desk.

"Could you give us something?" Dean asked.

"I got a name." he said.

"Okay." Dean nodded.

"Mother." Bobby said simply.

"Mother? M-mother of what? Mother of dragons?" Sam said.

"I wish. It says it a few times here. Mother of all." He said.

"What the hell does mother of all mean?" Dean wondered.

"I don't know." Bobby shrugged as they all exchanged worried looks.

* * *

"Where are they?" one of the dragons said once the other climbed out of the car he was driving.

"I ran into trouble." The dragon said, looking ashamed.

The first dragon glared at him before walking to the van.

"You're damn lucky I got enough." he snapped, yanking one of the girls from the van. "This is your lucky day, little girl. Come on, come on."

She whimpered as they dragged her to a deep hole in the ground. A gag was tied around her mouth, keeping her from speaking.

"Ego coniuro vos, insolubiliter ad mei potenciam aligati! Ad me... Sine prestolacione venire..." one of the dragons chanted.

The other reached over and pulled the gag off.

"Let me go! Please stop!" the girl pleaded.

"... Debeatis aperiat!"

"No! Please don't!" she struggled against them as they pushed her closer to the edge to see a fire slowly lighting up in the pit.

"It'll go easier if you relax." One of the dragons said before throwing her into the pit.

"Huc sine mora debeas mater!" the first dragon yelled triumphantly.

Suddenly the girl raised out of the pit, an invisible force carrying her to stand on the ground. Her eyes were glowing red and a satisfied smirk was on her face.

"Welcome." The dragons said, falling to their knees.

"You kept me waiting." She said in a sultry voice. "We have so much to do. Let's get started."

* * *

Elena's eyes opened and she sighed, sitting up. She wasn't able to go to sleep as she still had the strange feeling in her mind. She glanced over at Dean next to her to see that he was fast asleep.

"Elena." a voice whispered in her mind.

Her eyes widened and she glanced around. There was no one else in the room but she felt a tugging her mind, like something was pulling her. She slid out of the bed and tiptoed out of the room. When she got downstairs, she slipped past Sam where he was sleeping and into the kitchen. She eased the door open and stepped outside, walking onto the gravel carelessly.

"Hello." She whirled around and saw a figure standing there.

As soon as she saw him, her mind was hit with a bunch of memories.

"_Get away from me and don't come back for a very long time." she said, her voice shaking with red hot anger as she spoke._

"_Elena…" Gabriel sighed._

_She didn't say anything or even look at him. She just turned away, walking back towards the house as she tried to figure out what she was going to tell Dean. As she walked, she suddenly saw someone standing in front of her. Michael reached out and pressed a hand to her forehead._

"_What are you doing?" she demanded, her eyes wide as she found herself frozen in place._

"_I'm sorry. We can't have you telling the Winchesters about this. Not yet." He said._

"_No, stop." She said, feeling him delving into her mind._

"_It's not permanent." He said simply before reaching further inside._

Elena inhaled deeply, stumbling away from him.

"What the hell did you do to me?" she demanded, staring at him with wide eyes.

"I told you it wasn't permanent. You will only remember when you're in mine or Gabriel's presence. Of course you remember going down to the cage and you remember everything that Death told you except for the fact that I'm out of the cage. And you won't remember anything about Lucifer." Michael explained.

"Why?" she growled out, pressing a hand to her throbbing head.

"I already told you, the Winchesters can't know… not yet." He said, staring at her.

"Fuck you! You can't just mess with my head!" she shouted.

A corner of his mouth lifted.

"I think you'll find that I can, Elena. It's not forever. Just until we figure out what to do. You won't remember as soon as I leave. I just wanted to make sure that it was working." He said.

"Fix me, now." She snapped, glaring at him.

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen quite yet." He said.

"Michael!" Elena yelled.

He suddenly disappeared and she was left standing outside. The door to the house opened and Dean ran out with Bobby and Sam following her.

"Elena? What's wrong? Why were you shouting?" Dean said, running up to her.

She turned to look at him with a slightly dazed expression.

"I was shouting?" she asked, confused.

Elena looked around, her brow furrowed.

"How did I get outside?"

* * *

**Author's Note: Mwahahaha. I know I'm evil. Review please! Tell me what you think! Love you all!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, JMHUW, CherrySin, Nyssandria, MelissaIsLame, diehardromantic, xxPaige23xx, Dean Winchester Rocks, DrawingMyHeartOut, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Hollywood17, imusic247, SwanQueen4055, thestralboggart, and chiwi for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. Not many Elena moments with the brothers in this chapter. She's visiting the place up high in the sky and she is given a very startling explanation by a startling source. But at the same time, not everything is as it seems. Remember that as you read. You'll know what I mean at the end of this chapter. I'm really sorry if it gets confusing, I was having a hard time communicating what I wanted it to say.**

**2. The next chapter is an original chapter. Parts of it are in Mystic Falls and it involves Eve. **

**3. There's a chance that I might not do the Mannequin episode only because mannequins creep the shit out of me and if I do write it, I'll probably have nightmares about it. But if I do write it, I'll give you a hint about. It ****will**** have Lisa and Ben in it. And I'll give another hint. Elena has never heard about Lisa and Ben. **

**4. You will realize more of what I mean in the next chapter, but there are very important things happening to Elena in these next few chapters that will be very very important in the next part of this story. So remember these chapters. Keep them in the back of your mind. **

**Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

**ONE YEAR AGO – BRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND**

_The older hunter looked over at the younger one as they walked out of the warehouse._

"_You okay?" Samuel asked, concerned._

"_Yeah." Sam said simply._

"_How's the arm?" _

"_It'll hold till we get out of town." He answered as they reached the van._

"_Just don't bleed out, all right?" Samuel said to Sam as they climbed in._

"_Yeah, well, that's the plan." Sam agreed._

_They were driving down the highway when red and blue lights flashed in the rearview mirror. Samuel slowed down, glancing back._

"_Cop." He said._

_They both looked to see the cop, Deputy Atkins, approaching the van._

"_Evening, Deputy." Samuel said once he rolled down the window._

"_Agent Roark, Agent Wynand, mind stepping out of the van a moment?" he said, glancing between them suspiciously._

_They could tell that he knew something was wrong. Both of the hunters climbed out of the van._

"_We're just on our way to the office. Everything okay?" Samuel asked._

"_No. I can't get Sheriff Dobbs on the phone. I can't get anyone!" he snapped, shining a flashlight between them with a glare._

"_We spoke to Dobbs earlier. Maybe he's just, uh…"_

"_Is that blood?" the deputy demanded, noticing Sam's ripped sleeve._

"_Hey, look, there's no need to get riled." Samuel said calmly._

"_You're coming with me." Deputy Atkins said, finally deciding that they were too suspicious._

"_All right. We'll follow you back." the older hunter agreed._

"_I don't think so." he shook his head. "Get in my car, or you're under arrest."_

_Sam scoffed, smirking at him._

"_You're gonna arrest two federal agents? Really?" he laughed shortly. "Have a good night."_

_He turned to walk away._

"_If you think…" Deputy Atkins began, walking up to Sam._

_He grabbed his arm._

"_Hey, hey, hey, just hold…" _

_Samuel was interrupted when Sam began beating Atkins to a bloody pulp until he was unconscious, not a hint of hesitation in his eyes._

"_You think there were maybe calmer ways we could have done all that?" Samuel asked when he straightened up, leaving the man lying on the asphalt._

"_Do we care? Let's go." Sam said, turning back to get in the van._

* * *

"Are you sure you're all right?" Dean asked when he walked into the motel room after taking a phone call outside, heading straight for Elena.

They were in a town getting some books to research the 'mother of all' thing instead of working on a case because Dean was making Elena take it slow. She was on one of the beds wearing a comfortable outfit huddled in blankets and drinking coffee. He'd been like a mother hen, babying her ever since they'd found her outside dazed with no idea what was going on.

"I'm fine, Dean. I was just sleepwalking. Honestly you're worse than Bobby with your mothering." She said smiling at him.

He reached out and stroked her face.

"That's pretty bad sleepwalking." Dean said.

She sighed and gave him a look that told him to stop worrying.

"I'm sorry it's… everything is back to normal now. Well… as normal as it can be. Crowley is dead and Sam is back to being Sam. I don't want anything bad to start happening again." Dean said.

Elena smiled and pulled him in, kissing him deeply.

"Everything is fine." She assured him.

"Sources said prosecutors were getting closer to a decision on whether to charge the actor. But they adamantly denied that any prosecution was in any..."

They looked over at Sam to see what he was watching.

"What are you watching?" Dean asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Just trying to catch up. So... a few celebrities really took a turn this past year, huh?" the younger brother said, looking over at them.

"Or they're possessed." Dean suggested.

Sam scoffed and Elena shook her head.

"Seriously, think about it. So, I just got off the blower with Bobby."

"Oh, yeah? You got anything else on this, uh, 'Mother of All' thing?" Sam asked.

"Uh, no, nothing solid. He says it's quiet." Dean said.

Sam's cell phone beeped, announcing a new text.

"Quiet like quiet or quiet like too quiet?" he asked as he dug it out of his pocket.

"When is it ever just quiet?" Elena sighed, leaning her head back against the headboard.

"Right." Sam agreed as he checked the text on his phone. "Hmm."

"What?" Dean said.

He walked over and showed them the screen of his phone.

"What are these, coordinates? Who's it from?" Dean questioned.

"I have no idea." Sam answered, walking over to his computer to look the coordinates up.

"Well?" Dean said.

"Uh, Bristol, Rhode Island…" Sam replied. "… where three women disappeared in the last week. Apparently, the, uh, victims seemed to vanish into thin air."

"Could be something." The other brother said. "Who's the text from?"

"I don't know. It just kept ringing." Sam shrugged.

"What's that about?" Dean wondered.

"Could be another hunter looking for backup, throwing us a case? Who knows how many hunters I even met, working with the Campbells, you know? But I think we should go." Sam informed him.

"Whoa, wait. We're just gonna drop everything?" Dean questioned, raising his eyebrows.

"Dude, two minutes ago, you weren't doing anything." Sam reminded him.

"You got mysterious coordinates from a mysterious Mr. X, leading to a mysterious town? That doesn't throw up red flags to you?" Dean said.

"I don't know. Maybe. But that doesn't mean we can just ignore a bunch of missing girls. Right?" Sam urged him, looking at him with a pleading stare.

Elena looked at Dean and shrugged, leaving it up to him.

"Okay." He sighed. "We'll check it out. But if things get squirrelly, we dump out, okay?"

He pointed at Sam with a stern look, well, as stern of a look as Dean Winchester could muster when looking at his little brother's puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah." Sam agreed willingly.

* * *

**Black Dog – Led Zeppelin**

They were driving down the road towards Rhode Island. Elena was in the front seat and Sam was in the back looking through case files as they drove. The first few notes of a song started playing on one of Dean's few cassette tapes and Sam groaned from the back.

"I didn't miss your music taste either." He informed Dean.

"Shut up." Dean shot back.

Elean smiled, sliding her hand into Dean's hand that was sitting on her leg.

"Hey hey Mama, said the way you move, gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove." Dean sang in a highpitched voice.

"Oh, oh, child, the way you shake that thing, gonna make you burn, gonna make you sting." Elena continued, causing Dean to grin over at her, thrilled that his girl knew as many Led Zeppelin songs as he did.

They both looked back at Sam expectantly.

"Hey, hey, baby, when you walk that way, watch your honey drip, I can't keep away." He said unwillingly, rolling his eyes.

Elena and Dean both grinned triumphantly before they began dancing ridiculously to the music. Sam scoffed and shook his head but couldn't keep a smile off of his face. He didn't remember, but he was sure that he missed this.

"I gotta roll, can't stand still, got a flaming heart, can't get my fill." The two in the front seat sang together. "Eyes that shine burning red, dreams of you all through my head."

* * *

Elena was feeling the fuzzy feeling in her head again along with the same pulling feeling that she felt right after Gabriel died when Balthazar was calling her to heaven. They were in a new motel room and Dean and Sam were getting ready to go out to a bar to go over the case files.

"You coming?" Dean asked when he saw her sitting on the bed.

"I, uh… I don't feel so hot. Do you mind if I stay here and rest?" she questioned, getting a feeling that she shouldn't tell him what she was experiencing.

"No, actually I think it's better if you rest a little. I just wish I could convince Sammy to do the same." Dean said before wrapping his hand around the back of her neck and kissing her forehead.

"I'm fine, Dean." Sam sighed for the thousandth time since he got his soul back.

"Yeah you keep saying that." Dean said doubtully.

"Hey." Elena caught his wrist and smiled up at him. "I love you."

He smiled down at her and pulled her up into a kiss.

"I love you too." He said once he let her go.

She watched as they walked out before lying back onto the bed and closing her eyes.

"_Lucifer is returning."_

_Her eyes popped open and she saw that she was back in the hell that Death had brought her to. The devil's trap surrounded her and, at the center, she saw a figure there. For some reason, even though she somehow knew who the person was, her mind didn't quite accept it. She walked closer, her hands shaking. The figure suddenly turned, her hair blowing in the wind, and met her gaze with a smirk._

"_Katherine?" Elena breathed upon seeing her face reflected back, but not really._

_Her eyes were devious, triumphant. Her skin was glowing beautifully despite the lack of sunshine in the place. Her lips were full and stained a blood red color. The black dress seemed to flow ethereally around her slim figure. She looked frighteningly gorgeous. Her lookalike shook her head._

"_Not Katherine."_

_Her voice seemed to carry over the wind to reach Elena's ears. Her heart pounded at the words._

"_You're… me?" _

_She nodded and her lips spread into a smile into a fierce grin._

"_He's coming." The other Elena breathed happily, turning back._

_Elena noticed that her back no longer held the black tattoo. It was perfectly smooth and unmarked. The ground began to rumble and Elena stumbled away when she saw the other female's back shifting strangely. Before she knew it, a blinding white light filled the air and she instinctively threw an arm over her eyes, turning her face away. When she looked back, her jaw dropped. Two huge, silky black wings were suddenly sprouting out of the other Elena's back. The female turned, winking at Elena before spreading her arms and chanting something loudly in Enochian._

_A large crack suddenly formed in the ground and Elena stumbled backwards as a bright white light flowed out of it. When it stopped, she saw two figures standing there now. Lucifer was standing next to her. He wasn't in Sam's form like the last time she saw him. He was in the other form of the blonde man, Nick. _

"_Hello, Elena." he said, reaching out to stroke her face._

"_We've been waiting for you, haven't we?" the other Elena said in the same sultry voice, turning to look at her._

"_No… no." she said, backing up with wide eyes._

_They walked towards her with matching grins._

"_This will happen, Elena." Lucifer said._

"_You can't stop it." her other self said._

"_I will rise." He said._

"_And you will help." _

Elena jerked awake with wide eyes, looking around wildly. It took her less than a second to realize that she was no longer in the motel room.

* * *

"Well, freak's got a type… brunettes." Dean said, shifting through the papers. "Whoa. This one's got a little bit of a wild side. It's all in the eyes, Sam. See it?"

He picked up one of the missing flyers and showed it to his brother, who rolled his eyes. A waitress came up and set two fresh beers in front of them.

"All right, well, aside from your little deep insight there, these women actually have nothing in common… different jobs, different friends, different everything. So, what's the connection?" Sam wondered.

"I don't know. Why don't you figure that out?" Dean said, standing up. "I'm gonna go hit the poop deck."

He pointed up at the sign to the bathroom that literally said 'poop deck'. Sam rolled his eyes again as Dean walked off.

"Agent Roark?" a woman said.

He lifted his head to see a pretty brunette woman standing with a man who looked like her husband. He didn't look too thrilled that his wife was talking to sam.

"It's good to see you again." She said with a grin, staring right at Sam.

"It is." He said, at a loss for who this woman was.

"Oh, you remember my husband?"

The woman gestured to the man, who nodded once at Sam.

"Right." Sam said, smiling politely.

"Don." The woman reminded him, raising her eyebrows slightly.

"Of course, right. Um, hi." He waved a little bit.

The woman leaned in, getting uncomfortably close.

"So, you're back 'cause it started again, right… the disappearances?" she whispered, her eyes wide.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, right." Sam nodded, taken aback by all that was happening. "Um... so, if either of you two hear anything, please let me know."

"Where's your partner? The big bald guy? Agent Wynand, right?" the female asked, straightening up.

"Agent Wynand, of course. Well…"

"Sex rehab." Dean cut him off as he walked up. "Yeah, you've heard of plushies, right?"

"This is, uh… this is my new partner." Sam stammered out.

"Hi. Pleasure." Dean said, reaching out to shake the woman's hand. "How you doing? Hi."

He shook Don's hand next, who still looked displeased.

"Uh, so, Agent, we should, uh…" Dean trailed off, giving Sam a significant look.

"Yeah. Yeah, of course." Sam nodded.

"Of course. Uh, nice chatting with you, Agent Roark." The woman said, giving him a flirty smile.

"You too." He said, smiling at her.

She touched his shoulder as she passed and something sparked in Sam's memory. He saw a few images of him having very hot sex with Don's wife in the bathroom of the very establishment that they were in now.

"What was that? She just cougar-eyed you." Dean said, staring after the woman as Sam pulled himself out of the memory.

"I think Samuel and I have worked a case in this town." He said, looking up at Dean with wide eyes.

"You think?" Dean threw a Polaroid on the table of a man who had a big grin and looked like he won some sort of restaurant challenge.

Just behind him in the picture, Sam and Samuel were sitting at a table.

"Come on. Let's get the hell out of here." Dean said, dragging him out.

* * *

They arrived back at the motel to find it empty.

"Where's…" Dean cut off, finding a piece of paper on the bed in Elena's writing.

_I left you a voicemail because you didn't answer your phone. Jeremy needed help with something back in Mystic Falls. I'll be back soon. Love you. Take care of each other and let me know if you need anything._

_Love,_

_Elena_

"Hmm…" Dean pulled out his phone and saw that he did, in fact, have a missing call.

He dialed his voicemail.

"Hey I tried to reach you because Jeremy needs me back in Mystic Falls. Don't wait up for me, go ahead and work the case. I'll be back soon. Love you." Elena's voice said over the mailbox.

"Elena went to Mystic Falls. I'll text her where we're going." Dean said, throwing his stuff into a bag.

He looked over to see Sam on the bed looking at his laptop.

"Hey, come on. Hop to, would you?" he urged his brother.

"We can't go, Dean." Sam said, looking up at him.

"Uh, yeah, we can." Dean argued, staring back at him.

"No, listen… five guys went missing a year ago. They never found the bodies. I mean, that's got to be the job me and Samuel worked, right?" Sam said, reading an article on the disappearances.

"Great. What difference does it make?" Dean said.

"A year ago, five guys go missing, and… and now suddenly all these women go missing. Something's here. So either we just didn't stop it, or we only thought we did."

Dean sighed, shaking his head.

"Okay, but why the gender bend, huh? First it's dudes. Now it's chicks? That's a totally different M.O."

"I don't know. Who knows? The point is, something's still here." Sam said with certainty.

"Great. We'll call Bobby. He can deal with it." Dean said, hoisting his bag over his shoulder.

"Why? We can deal with it." Sam said, looking at him with a furrowed brow.

"Are you serious? Sam, there is a reason that hunters don't hit the same town over again… cause we have a habit of leaving messes behind." Dean said with frustration.

"Right. I agree."

"One of dad's rules… you never use the same crapper twice."

Sam stared at him.

"Everyone uses the same crapper twice." He reminded Dean.

"Not us. You know what I mean." Dean sighed.

"Okay, look… this creature is still walking around 'cause of me, right? I mean, I let it go. Dad also said, you finish what you start." Dean looked at him doubtfully. "Okay, I get it."

"Do you?" he asked.

"Yes. You're afraid I'll stroll down memory lane and I'll kick this wall in my head so hard, Hell comes flooding through, right? And then all of a sudden, I'm some drooling mess on the floor." Sam said with a slight scoff that might have sounded like a chuckle.

"It's not a joke." Dean said, glaring at him.

"Okay. I know. But listen… what's happening here right now… it's because I messed up somehow, in some big way. So every person who gets taken, every person who dies… that's on me. I have to stop it. And you'd do the same thing."

Dean stared at him, knowing that Sam was right. He would want to do the same thing.

"All right." he sighed. "I'll follow up with the brunettes. You see what you get from the cops."

* * *

Elena looked around with wide eyes, standing up as she did so. She seemed to be in the middle of a garden. The sun was warm on her skin and that's when she realized that she was no longer in her comfortable outfit. In fact, she was in a dress with heels.

"It's about time you woke up." A voice said.

She turned to see Gabriel standing there. He was wearing a suit, surprisingly enough. She'd never seen him in a suit. This time, her mind was more prepared for all of the memories that came rushing back to her.

"You bastard." She snapped, glaring at him.

"You have every reason to be upset…"

"Well thanks for your permission, ass. I feel so much better now." Elena hissed, cutting him off.

"Would you stop sassing me for a second and realize that I have something to say to you?" he demanded.

"I trusted you, Gabriel. And you allowed my mind to be invaded. By Michael, no less! I thought you weren't on his side! I thought you were on my side!" she yelled.

"I am on your side! This was the safest option! How do you think Dean and Sam would have reacted if you told them that Michael was out of the cage? They would have wanted to go on a hunt and they would have wanted to cut down anything with wings that got in the way! How do you think that would have gone for them? I was protecting them! I was protecting you! I suggested the safest option! You wouldn't have lied to them and I wouldn't have asked you to!"

In her mind, she knew what he said was making sense. She promised herself that she would never lie to Dean and Sam again. She looked away, biting her lip.

"Where am I?" she asked, keeping her tears at bay.

"Where do you think?" Gabriel sighed, sounding emotionally exhausted just like he had when he was facing Lucifer.

"Heaven." Elena sighed, realizing exactly where she'd been dragged.

"I know that you're angry. I know that you are confused and hurt and betrayed. I know, trust me. So we brought you here. Someone wants to see you. Someone wants to explain." He said, gesturing up to the large building that was suddenly spread before them where she hadn't seen it before.

"Who?" she questioned suspiciously.

"Michael." Gabriel answered.

* * *

"So, you and Nicole were roommates for a long time?" Dean questioned, walking around the kitchen.

"Since college, but we've been best friends forever." The girl, Bailey, said, nodding.

"Hmm." He said simply, looking at the papers on the fridge.

"This whole thing's really surreal. Are you any closer to finding her, or...?"

Dean glanced up at her as he walked to the table.

"We're doing everything we can. Now, you were with Nicole the night she went missing. Did she say anything?" Dean asked as he looked through a small bowl full of business cards and the like.

"Nothing. It's like I told the cops." Bailey answered. "I wish there was something."

He suddenly caught sight of something and pulled one of the business cards out that read 'Agent H. Roark'.

"Where'd you get this?" he asked, showing it to the girl.

"Oh, Nicole got that from that FBI guy." She said, nodding.

"Agent Roark. About… about yea high?" Dean gestured above his head with his hand. (Dean puts his hand up and gestures about a foot above his head)

"Yeah, that was him. One of the men that disappeared last year lived in our building." Bailey explained.

"Right." Dean nodded.

"So Agent Roark was asking us all questions about it, I guess." She shrugged.

"You guess? So he… he came by here?" he said, raising his eyebrows.

:Oh, he came… by a few times." She said unwillingly, her eyes shifting.

"Did he? To, uh... speak to Nicole." Dean questioned.

"Right." she nodded.

"And how would you... characterize their relationship?" Dean asked, already having a feeling about where this was going.

"Relationship? No, they weren't having a…" she said, shaking her head.

"Just the, the … the tone or the nature of their conversation." he clarified.

"Well... loud." Bailey said and then she looked at him guiltily. "And... athletic."

* * *

Sam was walking towards the entrance to the police station when he heard a loud voice.

"Hold it right there!" he stopped and turned to see an officer pointing a gun at him as he advanced. "Stop right there! Hands where I can see them!"

Sam raised his hands just as he had another memory surface.

"_Get in my car, or you're under arrest!"_

He pulled out of it just as the sound of him beating this man, Deputy Atkins, filled his mind. It must have been Sheriff Atkisn judging by the decorations on his uniforma.

"Look… no, sir." Sam stammered as he manhandled him. "Please just hold on for a second. There's been a misunderstanding here."

The next thing he knew, Sam was in a jail cell with the Sheriff outside of it.

"Man, you are dumb as a sack of hair… coming back here after what you did?" the man growled.

"Look, there's been a misunderstanding here." Sam said pleadingly.

"You are not a damn Agent, okay?" Atkins said angrily, pointing at him. "The FBI never heard of you."

"Just listen." Sam pleaded.

"Where are the bodies? Mothers want to bury their loved ones."

"I don't know." Sam sighed.

"Where's Sheriff Dobbs?" Sheriff Atkins demanded.

"I don't know!" Sam exclaimed.

"You run out of town soaked in blood… oh, and you bash my brains in to do it… and you really expect me to buy that?" the man questioned, looking skeptical.

"Look, would you believe that I don't remember anything?" Sam said, his hands wrapping around the bars.

"No. But good luck selling it to the judge." The sheriff said before turning to walk out.

* * *

"So you're Michael's errand boy now?" Elena scoffed.

Gabriel gave her a glare, not liking the insinuation that he was under anyone's thumb. She ignored him, looking around with wide eyes when they walked into the building.

"This is…" she breathed.

"What do you think we do for eternity? Sit around smiting people?" Gabriel questioned.

Elena didn't answer, knowing he wouldn't like what she had to say.

"You look interested." A voice said and she looked up to see Michael still wearing young John Winchester as well as an all black suit.

"I've always been interested in libraries. I like books." She said simply.

"I know." He answered.

She lifted her chin slightly as she stepped forward.

"Why am I here?" she asked.

"I want to show you something." The archangel said, gesturing for her to follow him.

Elena looked back at Gabriel and he nodded for her to follow Michael. Sighing, Elena followed him.

"This looks remarkably calm for there to be a civil war going on." she commented.

"Those involved aren't allowed here." Michael said simply.

"Cas isn't allowed?" She asked, looking at Gabriel.

"Well, strictly speaking, they think that 'here' is abandoned. So they have no reason to come here but if they did try, they wouldn't be able to come." He explained.

"What's so special about it?" Elena wondered.

"It's the resting place of…"

Gabriel was cut off when Michael opened the doors to a room and gestured for them to walk. Elena didn't miss the cold look that Michael sent to Gabriel. When she walked, her eyes widened quickly and she stumbled backwards, shocked at the faces that she saw.

"Ah… so nice of you to join us."

* * *

Sam looked up just as a woman walked up to his cell.

"What happened to my husband?" she demanded, glaring at him.

"I-I don't know." He stammered, standing up as he tried to remember who she was.

"Don't lie to me." she snapped emotionally. "I know who you are, Sam Winchester. I know what you do."

"What? You do?" Sam breathed, his eyes wide.

Suddenly yet another memory resurfaced. He was sitting in a living room with Samuel, the woman in front of him, and a man who was wearing a sheriff's badge.

"_Let me get this straight… you're not feds. You actually hunt things." the sheriff said in an unbelieving tone._

"_We know how it sounds." Samuel said, leaning forward slightly._

"_I'm not sure you do." The other man scoffed._

"_You saw those crime scenes, Roy. You really think something human could have taken those guys?" Sam questioned, no patience for the man's disbelief._

"_What you're saying… it's impossible." the woman, his wife, said._

"_You know, I'm sorry, I-I don't understand what she's got to do with any of this." Sam said, gesturing to her._

"_She's my wife." the sheriff said, putting his arm around her shoulders. "She works with me at the sheriff's station. You tell something like this to me, you tell it to her, too."_

_Samuel looked at Sam, who nodded unwillingly._

"_All right, what do you need us to do?" the sheriff asked._

"Your husband…" Sam said as he pulled out of the memory. "… he's the sheriff."

"Was the sheriff, until he vanished..." the woman corrected him. "And you vanished. What was I supposed to think? T-that thing got him, or that you killed him? I just want to know what happened."

"So do I. Believe me. Something happened to me. I have no memory of being here, ever." Sam said desperate to make someone believe him.

"What is this, Days of Our Lives? You're telling me you have some sort of amnesia?" she snapped skeptically.

"If I knew any of this, would I have stepped foot into this station? I'm sorry. I-I don't even know your name." Sam said.

"If this is some sort of a game, you're either incredibly clever or incredibly stupid." The female scoffed.

"I'm telling the truth. Look... I don't know what happened to your husband. But I can find out." Sam offered.

She stared at him for a moment, looking as though she might have begun to believe him.

"How?" she questioned.

"If you really know me, then you know that's my job." He replied.

"You really don't remember?" She asked.

"No. I really don't." he said, shaking his head.

"I'm Brenna Dobbs." She sighed.

"Brenna..." Sam said, sighing with relief. "I'm sorry about what happened to your husband. But I can find answers... just not from in here."

Brenna hesitantly unlocked the cell door with a set of keys in her hand and released him.

"Come on. Help me find some rope. If it's gonna look like a break-out, you're gonna need to tie me up." She said.

* * *

"What the hell?" Elena said, whirling around on Gabriel.

"Not hell." He reminded her.

"How… what…" she stammered out, pointing back at the beings behind her.

Not only was Anna there, Uriel was there along with Zachariah, who'd been the one to greet her. Jess and Ruby were in the room as well. It was strange to see Ruby in heaven. She didn't belong there, right? Her Aunt Jenna was in there as well.

"That would be me." she turned to see Chuck, the prophet Chuck, walk into the room through another door.

He was wearing an impeccable white suit and he had a neatly trimmed beard. All in all, he looked healthier than he'd ever seen him.

"Chuck?" Elena questioned, confused.

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Not quite. Not since I was in your world." He said.

She regarded him warily.

"Then who are you?" she asked.

"You know me as God." He said.

* * *

Sam looked up from where he sat on a rickety chair in the abandoned house. The police scanner that he nabbed from the station was on. He crept to the door, pulling out his gun. It opened and then closed to reveal Dean. He jumped when he saw Sam's gun trained on him.

"Hey, Sam." he said, his arms up in surrender.

Sam sighed, lowering it.

"So, how does it feel to be a fugitive again? Hate to say I told you so." Dean said as they moved into the house.

He'd gotten all of the stuff from the motel, including Elena's stuff.

"You love to say I told you so." Sam shot back.

"Actually, you're right - I do love to say I told you so." Dean shrugged with a smirk. "So, I found out something on, uh, 'crazy eyes McGee'. Turns out you two knew each other."

"What?" Sam said, looking confused.

"Biblically." He continued. "I just spoke to her roommate. I got to say, man… you really got around. I mean, soulless or not I'm actually kind of impressed."

"Eight Sierra Papa. Got a 1057, 1100 block of Hope Street. Over." A voice on the police scanner said.

"Missing person… another one." Sam said, jumping up.

"Okay, all right." Dean stopped him. "I'll go. You stay."

Sam stared at him for a moment.

"Yeah. Fine." He finally sighed, sitting back down.

"Sam?" the older Winchester said doubtfully.

"What?" Sam demanded.

"Stay here." Dean said in a warning tone.

"Fine! Go!" Sam said.

Dean walked out and Sam waited for a few minutes before he left as well.

* * *

Elena's eyes widened and she felt like her mind was filling with too much information at this point. It was going to explode if they weren't careful.

"You want to run that by me again?" she said quietly, her hands clenching into fists.

"Elena…" Jenna said, stepping forward as she recognized the thinly veiled fury in her too-calm voice.

It was exactly what Miranda did when she was furious. Unfortunately, it was too late.

"You sadistic son of a bitch! We prayed for you! Cas searched for you! And you were there! You were there the whole time watching us suffer and then you just… disappeared! You… what… that… I can't believe you!" she shouted, ignoring the fact that she was bellowing at God himself and that it probably wasn't the best idea that she'd ever had.

"Can everyone excuse us for a moment?" Chuck/God asked calmly, looking at her with understanding.

The angels and the others all shuffled out of the room, Ruby smirking while the rest of them looked solemn.

"Why are Zachariah and Uriel alive? Why are they even in heaven?" she said, trying to keep her temper under control once they were alone.

"Do you even know most of the things they did? Oh that's right, you were a prophet. You probably saw it all in visions." Elena spat out without giving him a chance to answer.

"Does it really surprise you that I give all of my children second chances after seeing how many times Castiel has survived death?" he asked, sitting at the long table in the room and gesturing for her to sit as well.

Elena did so unwillingly, clenching her hands together.

"Why didn't you interfere? You were there. You saw everything that was happening." She said.

"Everything happened exactly as it was meant to." He said cryptically.

"What do you mean, everything happened exactly as it meant to? We derailed everything. We stopped the apocalypse." Elena scoffed.

"Yes, you did. But did I not give you a way of doing so? Do you really think that you would have been able to find Death so easily, with or without Crowley's help, had it not been for my helping hand? Did I not give you the location of the final showdown?" Chuck asked, sounding more formal than she'd ever heard him.

She stared at him.

"You mean to tell me that you meant for us to stop the apocalypse?" she asked.

"There are a lot of things that I meant to happen and there are some things that I did not. It says a lot about you and the Winchester brothers that you continue to take even me by surprise." He said.

"If you're in heaven, why is there a civil war going on? Why don't you just stop it?" she asked.

"It's necessary." He answered.

She let out a breath and stared at him for a moment.

"Necessary? Do you know how much your children are suffering? How much Cas is suffering? And you call that shit necessary?" Elena snapped, pushing away from the table and standing.

"I'm sorry but I want nothing to do with this place and I want nothing to do with you." she said, turning to walk out.

"Please, let me show you something, Elena." he said.

She stopped short and huffed out a breath, turning around. Sitting on the table was a book that hadn't been there before.

"This is a history of heaven. Well… one of several volumes. The thing about the history of heaven is that I already know what will be the future. So I have already written it, as I write everything." He said, flipping it open.

Elena walked to the table slowly, her curiosity at what she was being shown overtaking her anger.

"Is it better than your novels?" she smarted off, staring down at it.

Chuck/God actually laughed.

"I sincerely hope so. Now I'm not going to show you some great revelation. I'm not going to tell you how this war ends or how many casualties there are. I am going to show you the last page of this book. The very last sentence of this part of the history of heaven." He flipped it to the very end and she saw that all of the other words were blacked out.

"Don't you trust me?" she mumbled.

He didn't answer, simply remaining silent as she read the last line.

**All of heaven lived in peace restored. **

"What does that even mean?" she asked, looking up at him.

"I suppose that it will be our version of happily ever after." Chuck/God explained.

"Well isn't that nice for you." Elena said, stepping away.

"It's nice for all of us. But we all have to do our parts, Elena." he said.

"If you give me some bullshit about playing roles, I swear to... you… that I will be furious." She snapped.

"You're already furious, Elena. I'm not too concerned about invoking that emotion in you. Did you know that I planned on making you an angel?" he asked.

"What?" she short-circuited.

"It's true. If things had gone according to plan, with the apocalypse, I would have made you an archangel as powerful as the others. You would have been one of my greatest warriors. I see no reason this still cannot happen." He said.

"I don't want to be one of your warriors. They live nothing but a life of misery." She said with digust.

"And what do humans live? Is your life happy, Elena?" Chuck/God asked.

"No, not all of the time. But you know what? I will take those small moments of complete happiness, those small moments of complete bliss, every day and twice on Sunday over being one of your mindless soldiers." She said.

"That is not what I want you to be. I want you to be my warrior because of your humanity. Because of your love and your compassion. Because you know when to spare a life and when to take one. You will not hesitate to protect those that you love. If all of my children were like that, there would not be a civil war in heaven. There would be no hell and we would all be united together." Chuck/God said.

"But you created them to be this way. You created them to be mindless soldiers who follow orders above following their emotions." Elena argued.

"That is true. I did that. I learned my lesson. I could have created humans the same way. I did not. I wanted them to have a choice. I wanted them to have free will. That is what I admire most in you and those brothers. You are the epitome of what I imagined when I created humans. You are, if I may, the perfect humans." he said.

"We're far from perfect." She scoffed. "We're flawed. We're dirty. We're just like every other human on earth."

"And that is why you are the perfect human. You are far from the perfect angels, which are all the good parts of humans, but you are also far ahead of the perfect demon, which are all of the bad parts of humans." he explained.

"I don't understand." Elena said, confused.

He sighed, looking down at the book.

"If I could, I would will this peace to come tomorrow. But I cannot for many reasons. Mostly because there is no guarantee that the peace will be kept if my children do not come to it themselves." Chuck/God looked at her, a great sadness in his eyes. "This future will not happen for quite a bit of time, unfortunately. And in that time, you will face trials that you never thought possible. But Elena you are my strongest creation, my strongest warrior. Stronger than Michael and Castiel and Lucifer. You are my perfect human and my perfect angel. You can bring about this peace in heaven and a peace on earth that has not been seen since the creation of humans. But with all of that comes a great responsibility."

"What responsibility?" Elena asked, looking at him warily.

"Burdens. Unimaginable burdens that you cannot begin to comprehend. You will be targeted from every side and you will fall many times. But you will also rise, and you will raise everyone with you. But only if you choose to accept." He said.

"Why me?" She asked in a small voice.

"It doesn't have to be you. It shouldn't have been you. But you put yourself out there, you showed yourself to be worthy. You willingly and openly give love to a man who should have been impossible to love by human standards. You gave love to an angel who you owed nothing to. You save lives and you sacrifice yourself for others. You are pure." He said.

"I'm not, though." She said.

"I know that you hate Zachariah and Uriel for what they've done. I know that you killed them both the first time around and I do not blame you for doing so. But I also know that, despite the fact that you might have been angry when you saw them, you would not kill them if I asked you not to. If I reminded you that they are my sons, you would not attack them."

Elena sighed, knowing that he was right.

"I am not agreeing to anything. I do not want to be an angel." She warned him.

He stared at her.

"What do you want from me?" she sighed.

* * *

"Listen, thank you for your time. We're on it." Dean said as he walked out of the house where the latest disappearance happened.

It was the cougar lady from the restaurant.

"Yeah. Thanks." Don said, nodding.

Dean immediately grabbed his phone and dialed Sam's number.

"This is Sam. Leave a message." His voicemail said.

"Sam, answer the phone, damn it. I found the connection between the missing chicks. They all banged the same dude. You. It's you, Sam. The texts, the victims, all of it… it's a trap for you. Call me back." he hissed before hanging up.

Then he hesitated before calling Elena's number. It went straight to voicemail immediately, which he found strange.

"It's me. Sam's in trouble. Call me back." he said simply before hanging up.

* * *

Brenna was walking through her house when she turned the corner and saw Sam there.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Sam said quickly when she screamed with panic.

"You can't be here!" she said, staring at him with wide eyes.

"Okay, p-please just listen." He stammered.

"What happened to Debbie Harris?" Brenna demanded.

"Debbie?" he said, confused.

She must have been the woman from the restaurant if Brenna thought he had something to do with it.

"I let you out, and she's just gone."

"And y-you think I did something to her?" he questioned.

"I don't know what to think." She sighed, stepping away and rubbing her forehead.

"Look, um, I need your help." Sam said hesitantly.

"Are you kidding?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I need the case files that your husband made about the disappearances last year." He said.

"So go to the station and find it." she told him.

"It's not there. I broke in and I looked, and it's gone. And I have a theory about who might have it. Look, we both want the same thing here, Brenna. I promise. We want to find out what happened last year, and we want to stop what's happening right now." Sam pleaded.

She sighed.

"The file's upstairs. I'll be right back." Brenna said, walking past him.

Sam turned and looked at the living room, a memory coming to him.

"_So, you guys just travel all the time? I mean, you just pick up and go? Doesn't that get hard?" Brenna asked._

"_Not when you're young… it's great. Once you got a family, it's a little tougher. Deanna got pregnant, and we didn't know what we were gonna do. But Mary was...She was a blessing."_

_Samuel looked at his beer, noticing that it was empty._

"_There's more in the garage." Sheriff Dobbs said, standing up._

"_Ah, listen, you sit. I'll get it." Samuel said, getting up and walking off._

"_He misses her. You know, at least you two have each other." Brenna said with a smile._

"_Well, Samuel wasn't really around when I was a kid. We have more of a, uh, business relationship." Sam said emotionessly._

"_Uh, do you have any other family?" she asked._

_Sam stared at her for a moment._

"_Family just slows you down."_

"Sam? Sam?! You all right?"

He turned to see Brenna standing there with a box.

"Yeah. Yeah. Um... all right, let's see what you have."

They went to the table and spreaded out, looking through the evidence. He picked up a bag that had what looked like a spiderweb in it. Yet another memory surfaced.

"_Best guess… it came from an Arachne." Samuel said._

_They were in the bar discussing the case as they looked through the evidence._

"_You ever seen one?" Sam asked._

"_No one has… not outside of Crete, not for about 2,000 years." The older hunter answered._

"_Then what do we even know about them?" Sam questioned._

"_Zip. Just a bunch of guesses and a blurry picture on the side of a Greek vase."_

"_Yeah!" they suddenly heard someone yell._

_They both turned to see what the ruckus was in time for the picture to be snapped of a man who won some sort of competiton._

"_So, I gather we got no clue how to kill this thing, huh?" Sam asked, turning back._

"_I guess we just go at it till something sticks." Samuel sighed._

"_Well, I got an idea of where it might be, at least. So far, all the vics have been men in their 30s, and they've all gone missing within a 2-mile radius." Sam explaind._

"_So we just get out and kick bushes." Samuel said._

"_No, that'd be a waste of time. I mean, it's all suburban sprawl… hundreds of houses, at least. It could be anywhere."_

_Sam pulled out a map, pointing at a specific area._

"_Lonely Pines Park." He said._

"_Yeah. I say we make this thing come to us." Sam suggested._

"_How do we do that?" Samuel asked._

"Hey, um, Brenna, do you mind if I - if I, um, borrow all this stuff for a couple hours?" Sam asked.

"Um, okay, I guess." She said, helping him pack it up.

She looked at him as they walked to the door.

"You really don't remember Roy, do you?"

Sam shook his head regretfully.

"He was a good man. I've made peace that he's dead. I have. But I just want to know what happened." Brenna said as she opened the door for him.

"I'm sure he died a hero." Sam said sympathetically.

She nodded at him and closed the door as he turned around. He pulled out his phone and looked at it to see a voicemail on it.

"Sam, answer the phone, damn it. I found the connection between the missing chicks. They all banged the same dude. You. It's you, Sam. The texts, the victims, all of it… it's a trap for you. Call me back." Dean's voice said.

Sam looked to the left side of the house to see a spiderweb flapping in the slight breeze. He set the box down and pulled out his gun, creeping towards it. Suddenly a hand came down on his shoulder and he whirled around, pointing his gun at the person. Dean ducked slightly, backing away.

"Whoa. Whoa." He said, his hands raised in surrender.

"I almost shot you... again." Sam sighed, lowering his gun. "What the hell?"

"I figured you'd come and talk to her." Dean snapped, glaring at him. "I told you to stay home, man. Did you get my message? Come on. We got to get you out of here. Let's go."

They walked off towards the Impala.

"Have you heard from Elena?" he asked.

"No, why?" Sam answered as they climbed into the car.

"She isn't answering her phone. It's going straight to voicemail." Dean said.

"Maybe she's just busy and forgot to charge her phone. I'm sure she would let us know if something was going wrong." Sam assured him.

* * *

"Well we know that this is a monster with opposable thumbs and unlimited text messaging, and we know that it wants to kill you specifically. Does that about cover it?" Dean said.

"It's an Arachne." Sam said, staring down at the case files.

"A what?" Dean said, wondering how he just knew that unless he called Bobby.

"I remembered." Sam admitted unwillingly, refusing to look at his brother.

"You remembered?" Dean said incredulously. "Y… I'm sorry. Uh, what else have you remembered?"

"Don't worry, all right? I-it's nothing to do with Hell." Sam assured him, finally looking up.

"Uh-huh. Not yet, anyway." Dean said, sounding pissed.

"What can I do, Dean? The stuff is just starting to come back, all right? Maybe it's natural." Sam said.

Dean stared at him for a moment before standing up.

"We're leaving." He decided.

"No, we can't." Sam argued.

"We are not the only hunters on the planet, okay? We can call Bobby. He and Rufus could come and wrap up." Dean snapped, pointing at Sam.

"How? Like you said, it could be anybody, we got jack for leads." Sam shot back.

"We know that it hates you." Dean reminded him.

"I know who did this. I just… I can't remember."

"I don't think you get the risk here, Sam." Dean said.

"Yes, I do." He replied.

"Really? You get that every time you scratch that wall, that you are playing Russian roulette?" Dean said, glaring at him.

"Dean, I get you're worried, okay? And I know what you think is gonna happen. But you know what? It will or it won't." Sam said.

"Sam…" he sighed.

"Look, I'm starting to think that… that I might have done some bad stuff here, Dean. And so I don't care if it's dangerous. I have to set things right, 'cause I got a frigging soul now, and… and it won't let me just walk away. I'm staying here. And I need you to back me up."

Dean stared at him, trying to see it from his point of view. Right now, he really wished that Elena were there to give him guidance. He really needed it.

"All right. Why not?" he finally broke. "Well, let's memento this thing, shall we?"

They began pinning things like pictures and news articles up on the wall, connecting them where necessary. As they did so, Sam felt something, like the answer was on the tip of his tongue. Suddenly he was pulled into a memory.

"_That's right. Yeah, Lonely Pines Park, one hour. Thanks, Roy. All right." he said into the phone._

"_Are you sure about this?" Samuel asked once he hung up._

"_The Arachne's been snacking on mid-30s guys. We need bait that fits the demo. I'm too young. You're too old." Sam reminded him._

"_89 and counting." Samuel nodded. "I still think that we should have looped Roy in on the plan."_

"_Do we want a credible performance, or don't we?" Sam asked._

"_But what if something goes wrong?" he said._

"_Roy's a big boy. He'll be fine. Trust me." Sam said._

"_It's just... not the way I'm used to doing things." Samuel sighed._

"_Got it. Welcome to the future. Let's go." Sam said without sympathy, standing up and grabbing his jacket._

_They were at the park now watching as Dobbs paced back and forth, waiting for them._

"_Let's hope this thing's hungry." Sam murmured._

_Moments later, something jumped out and attacked the sheriff. Something distinctly female and fast and strong._

_They ran out of their hiding place to find that Dobbs and the Arachne were gone._

"_Let's split up, look for him." Samuel said as he began to walk off._

"_No, no, wait. It's too late." Sam stopped him._

"_Let's go!" Samuel urged him._

"_They're gone, Samuel!" Sam snapped at him. "Look… it's okay. I turned on the G.P.S. on Roy's cell."_

"_In English, please." Samuel said._

"_We can track them back to wherever she goes." He explained._

_Samuel stared at him for a moment._

"_So, what, Roy's just some redshirt to you, just spider bait?"_

"_No, no, of course not." Sam said, shaking his head._

_Samuel stared at him doubtfully._

"_This is my back-up plan." _

"_My God, son, you're about as cold as they come. You know that?" he said, staring at Sam with a hint of disgust._

"_Let's go." Sam said, ignoring his comment._

_They arrived at the warehouse by the docks and walked in to find several men wrapped up in webs. Samuel walked to one of them and cut through it to reveal a man with glasses. He looked pale and lifeless._

"_Poor bastard." He muttered._

_Suddenly the trapped man gasped for air and the other men woke as well, proving that they were not dead. Sam ran to the freshest looking web and cut it open to reveal Dobbs._

"_Help me. I can't... feel..." the sheriff choked out._

"_Roy, hey, where is she?" _

_Sam didn't get an answer as he was suddenly thrown backwards into a wall. Samuel pulled out a gun and shot her once. She didn't react to the bullet, just walking to him and throwing him across the room. Sam ran around her, grabbing a fallen machete and whirling around, slicing her head off._

"_Well, I guess decapitation works." Samuel said as her body fell to the floor. _

_He ran to the sheriff, who was struggling._

"_Roy. You're gonna be okay. Just hang in. We're gonna get you some help. Listen, if we can get him to the hospital quick…" he assured him before standing up._

"_He can't be helped." Sam said._

"_What?" Samuel said, shocked._

"_I don't know about Arachne, but I do know about spiders. One brown recluse bite can kill you. This thing? Look at these guys… that poison's eating them alive. They're just dead men walking." He said softly._

"_So, what are you saying?" Samuel demanded._

"_I'm saying we put him out of his misery." He said, drawing his gun._

_He walked to Dobbs first, who immediately began pleading._

"_Sam... please." He whispered._

"_Killing this thing saved a lot of lives. We couldn't have done it without you." he said._

"_No." Dobbs said, panicking._

"_You're a hero." Sam assured him before shooting him in the head._

_Samuel winced each time he went around and shot another man. Finally, when he was done, he walked to stand in front of his grandfather._

"_We can't just leave the bodies here. Get the gasoline."_

Sam's eyes widened.

"I know what happened."

* * *

Brenna was sleeping on the couch when she heard a noise that jerked her awake. She stood and began to walk to the kitchen but was quickly stopped by a figure standing in front of her. He was familiar but at the same time, not at all the same.

"Roy?" she gasped, studying his scarred face.

"I love you." he said, a slight hiss in his voice.

* * *

"What are you gonna say to Brenna?" Dean asked, watching as Sam dialed the number on his phone.

"Relax, Dean." Sam sighed.

"Hey, Brenna, it's… it's Sam." he said once she answered. "I'm just checking in. Yeah, of course I can swing by. Okay. Yeah. Bye."

"What was that about?" Dean asked.

"She wants me to swing by." He answered, looking up at him.

"For?" he questioned.

"She said it's no big deal, but I can tell she's in deep trouble." Sam answered.

* * *

They were walking up to the house with their guns drawn hesitantly when Sam noticed somethning.

"Dean, back door." He said, gesturing to the open door.

Dean nodded and they started forward but he noticed something else.

"Sam. Light's on in the shed." He pointed out.

Sam nodded and they changed direction, walking there instead.

"My spidey senses are tingling." Dean hissed as they walked in.

"Shh." Sam answered.

"Sam?"

They exchanged a glance and walked around until they found Brenna huddled by a table crying.

"Brenna? Hey." Sam said softly.

"What you did to Roy... is it true?" she asked, her voice cracking.

Before either brother could say anything, Dobbs jumped out and attacked Dean, knocking him out quicky. Then he turned on Sam and threw him against the wall, choking him off.

"Answer the question, Sam." he snapped.

Sam stared at him with wide eyes and the man smirked before knocking him out as well.

* * *

When he and Dean came to, they were held against the wall by web up to their necks.

"You got to admit I look good, Sam. Well, except for your little souvenir." Dobbs gestured to the bullet sized scar on his forehead as he knelt in front of Sam.

"You win. I'm here." Sam said. "Let Brenna go. This has nothing to do with her."

Roy let out a chuckle.

"You come back around, start hanging out with my wife, and you think this has nothing to do with her? But then... you thought I was out of the way, right? I got to say, you get a hell of a lot wrong, Sam, like that thing you threw me to. You thought it was here to feed." He said, glaring at him.

"She was here to breed." Sam realized.

"Yeah. That thing was playing the mating game, and I guess I fit her profile... me and all those other poor bastards. She bit us to turn us into what she was. By the time you pulled that trigger, I wasn't human. Not anymore. So bullets didn't hurt me much. Oh, and neither did fire. So after you left, well, we ran. Me… I hid for months, nearly starved. But you know what kept me going? Every night, I dreamed about ripping your throat out. I thought I was sending you a neon sign. The text? Taking all those girls you screwed? I was kicking so much sand in your eye, I couldn't figure out why you weren't getting it! Then Bren tells me you've got brain damage. It's just too good." He said, standing up and laughing.

"Where are they, Roy... the women?" Sam asked.

"Scattered... in the wind. They're like me now. You killed one monster, you made so many more. Congratulations. The only question is, do I kill you... or turn you?"

Suddenly Dean broke free of the web that he'd been cutting with a glass shard that he found. He leapt onto Roy but the creature quickly got the upper hand, throwing him against the wall with a hiss.

"No! Roy, stop!" Brenna yelled, running to Sam to attempt to free him so that he could help.

They heard a shout that didn't belong to Dean and turned to see Elena holding Dobbs against the wall. She pressed her hand to his head and closed her eyes.

"Elena… what…" Dean began as Brenna finally freed Sam, who stood up and ran over.

Elena's eyes popped open after a moment and she stared at him, seeing his panicked look.

"Thank you for offering up that information so willingly." She said before pressing her hand to his face.

Dobbs screamed as bright light flowed from her hand into his head. It wasn't long before he collapsed to the ground, dead.

"Elena." Dean said, shocked to see her there.

She turned to him.

"I'll be back." she said simply before disappearing.

* * *

Sam remained quiet as he walked Brenna to her front door. She walked forward to open it and he sighed.

"Brenna... look, I am so sorry. Brenna, I-I mean, I..."

She closed her door without bothering to glance back at him and he sighed again, knowing that he would and should never receive forgiveness for his regrettable actions.

* * *

"You okay?" Dean asked as they packed up.

"You were right. We shouldn't have come back here." Sam muttered, shoving his clothing into a bag.

"Well, we did kill uh... spider man. Well… Elena did." Dean shrugged.

Sam glared at him.

"I'm just saying…"

"What?" Sam interrupted his older brother.

"Sam, you got to understand that all that crap last year… all of it… none of it was you." Dean assured him unsuccessfully.

"Let's be crystal clear, okay? It was me." Sam shot back, shaking his head.

"Well, can I get you anything?" Dean asked, sitting on a couch.

"What are you now, my waitress?" Sam questioned, scoffing.

"I'm just trying to make you feel better. Don't be a bitch." Dean snapped.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He muttered.

"Yeah, you look fine." Dean said, staring at him. "All I'm saying is everything's gonna be okay."

"I don't know, Dean." Sam said. If I did this here, then who knows how many oth…"

He was interrupted by Elena suddenly appearing in the room. They both stared at her with wide eyes, taking in the blood that covered her.

"What happened?" Dean asked hesitantly, standing up.

"That creature kept in contact with those of his kind. He knew where they were. I found them." She said simply, staring at them.

"You killed them?" Sam asked, surprised.

"They would have continued on their massacres. It was necessary." Elena said, tilting her head to the side with a furrowed brow.

Dean suddenly realized exactly what she reminded him off. Cas when he was taken back into heaven and set back on the straight and narrow angelic path. She was emotionless, focused. Nothing like the real Elena.

"Were you really in Mystic Falls? Helping Jeremy?" he asked.

"Mystic Falls?" she said, confused.

A sudden thump interrupted their conversation. They turned to see Sam lying on the ground choking as he stared into space.

"Sammy? Sammy?!" Dean ran over and collapsed on his knees next to him. "Sammy, talk to me!"

Elena walked over and bent down, putting her hand on his head. An image of Sam burning amongst fire flashed through her mind and she flinched away.

* * *

The young woman dressed all in white sighed as she leaned back against the seat she was sitting in.

"All due respect, but is this really worth our time? Messing with this… dirt?" one of the creatures asked who was with her.

"It's necessary. The Petrova doppelganger is truly the way into everyone's minds, angels, demons and humans alike. She will be the key to our success." The woman said with a grin.

"You are using an awful lot of energy to show her these things." anothre one of the creatures commented.

She turned her cold eyes on him.

"It is necessary." Eve said simply, looking around the large library that served as her backdrop for the performance she'd just put on for the Winchsters' precious guardian angel.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope it wasn't too confusing! I tried my best to make it not confusing. Please review!**

**A few things:**

**1. So to those who have been asking, yes, Eve has a connection to the Petrovas. I'm not going to tell you what quite yet. You'll have to wait until the next chapter. But it is significant.**

**2. Yes, she was making Elena see all of that 'heaven' and 'angels' and 'God' stuff. The next chapter will be even worse as she gets more into Elena's head. It is significant that she got many of the facts right, including that Chuck is really God. It will do more to mess with Elena's head when she finds out that it's really true and Eve didn't just make it up.**

**3. In case you haven't noticed yet, a main theme of this story so far is messing with Elena's mind. That will be very important throughout this entire story. She'll take it as well in this series as she takes in on the actual show when she figures it out.**


	18. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, CherrySin, RHatch89, Nyssandria, xxPaige23xx, chiwi, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Hollywood17, Dean Winchester Rocks, JMHUW, TheElegantFaerie, DrawingMyHeartOut, RippahGoneWolf, diehardromantic, and the guest for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. For those asking, the entire heaven thing last chapter was a set up by Eve. The real angels weren't involved. **

**2. Get ready for a different Elena in this chapter.**

**3. IMPORTANT: Before your read this, know that this is probably my least favorite chapter that I've written. As you can tell, it took me a long time to write and I couldn't really get what I wanted to write exactly as I imagined it. I wasn't going to post it but I figured that was unfair to you since I did take so long to update. So I apologize for the quality of this chapter. It's not my best and I am willing to recognize that. I promise my next one will be better. It's also not extremely long so I apologize for that. I just had a really hard time writing it.**

**4. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**5. There are songs in the story that I listened to while writing. They're underlined and bolded.**

* * *

"Sam? Sam. S-Sam? Oh, come on." Dean said desperately shaking Sam.

"Can't you do anything?" he demanded, looking up at Elena.

"What exactly do you want me to do, Dean? I'm not an expert on this wall thing. If it were up to me to do something, I would have dragged him out of town as soon as you figured out that being here was scratching that wall." she fired back, staring at him.

"What the hell happened to you?" he said, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Nothing." Elena said simply, putting her hand on Sam's shoulder.

Dean shook his head, unwillingly to fight with her right now.

"Sammy!" he growled out, shaking his brother a little more forcefully.

"Come on, come on. Come on, damn it."

Sam's eyes finally opened and Elena could have sworn she saw fire flicker in them before it faded and he groaned loudly. Elena and Dean helped him sit up as he groaned painfully again.

"Hey, hey, hey, you with me?" Dean said, trying to get his attention.

Sam looked him with a wide-eyed expression, breathing deeply. Dean looked at Elena for help, forgetting his frustration with her for a moment.

"Come on." she sighed.

Dean helped her pull him up to a standing position.

"Come on, got to get you out of here." He said.

Sam grunted, leaning against them for help.

* * *

Elena stared at the mirror, taking in her bloodsoaked appearance. They were at Bobby's house, having had Elena teleport them and the Impala to Sioux Falls. She titled her head to the side slightly, leaning towards the mirror to stare into her own cold eyes.

"_What do you want me to do?"_

She drew away, looking down at her clothing and blinking. In the next moment she was naked. She turned towards the shower and turned the water on, climbing in to wash the blood off of her skin. She knew that she could have easily gotten rid of it without showering but she wanted to take her time to get her thoughts in order.

"_Let me in." _

The water ran over her, running down the drain stained a light pink from the blood.

"_You've got to be kidding me? After your head angel invaded my mind and twisted it for his purposes?" _

"_I'm asking you to trust me, Elena. I need you more than you need me and you can believe in that."_

She turned, putting her face directly under the water and squeezing her eyes shut.

_Her eyes squeezed shut as he reached out and placed his hand on her head._

"_Thank you so much, Elena."_

_Her eyes opened with shock. As he spoke, his voice changed from the male tone to a light, female one. She was suddenly facing a pretty brunette in a white dress._

"_I couldn't have done it without your permission. Those angels had such good barriers in your mind and all it took was your trust to break every single one of them down. I bet you didn't even feel a thing."_

She reached out and turned the water off, looking down to see that her body was clean once again. She studied her hands, bringing them up to look at them.

"_No, get away from me."_

_She tried to get away from this female that she didn't know but she found that she was frozen in place._

"_I'm sorry, Elena. But I'm in your head now. And now I just have to push the right buttons and you'll be the perfect weapon."_

She slid the curtain aside and looked in the slightly fogged up mirror.

"_Weapon for what?"_

A slow smirk formed on her lips as she climbed out of the bathtub. The reflection she was looking at was not her face, but the face of another young brunette.

"_For chaos. Have fun, Elena. I'm setting you loose with all of those good-natured thoughts locked away. Do try not to get killed. I think you'll be my favorite experiment and you're only my first."_

She blinked once and the reflection was back to being her own.

* * *

Dean glanced over at Sam to see him pinching his nose where he was sitting on the couch. Bobby was out getting food for them. Dean's worry was split between his brother, who was obviously in trouble, and Elena, who'd been in the upstairs for over forty minutes.

"How you feel?" he asked Sam.

"Like I got hit by a... planet." Sam sighed.

Dean nodded, looking back at the door.

"So, how long was I out, again?" he said.

"I'm telling you, like two or three minutes. Why, what'd it feel like to you?" Dean questioned, finally turning to face him.

"About a week, give or take." Sam answered, rubbing his forehead.

"You want to talk about it?" he said.

"It?"

"Yeah, whatever that was. I mean, it was like you were freakin' electrocuted." Dean explained with stress in his voice.

"Look, I mean, it wasn't fun, but I-I'm... fine." Sam shrugged.

"Fine." Dean scoffed, shaking his head. "It was Hell, wasn't it?"

Sam looked down, not wanting to meet his brother's eyes.

"You got a big, fat faceful of hell. Ever cross your mind that you could've died?"

"Oh, come on." Sam scoffed.

"I'm serious. And none of this 'it's just a flesh wound' crap. Cause we did it your way. We let you go explore, and every bad thing that I said would happen happened. So guess what… past stays past. We're not kicking that wall again." Dean said gruffly.

"So I'm supposed to just ignore it?" the younger man demanded.

"Yes." Dean nodded with his jaw clenched.

"Dean... I might've done... who knows what, and you want me to just forget about it?" Sam said, looking at him with disbelief.

"You shove it down, and you let it come out in spurts of violence and alcoholism." Dean shrugged unsympathetically.

"That sounds healthy." Sam sighed, shaking his head.

"Well, works for me." Dean replied.

Sam just stared straight ahead.

"It's not a joke. Your life is on the line here, Sam. This is not a debate. I mean, first you were a soulless dickbag, and now you're not." Dean said, staring at him. "So we good?"

"Yeah. Sure." Sam said unwillingly.

They heard footsteps and looked to Elena walked in. Dean held his tongue for a few moments but then he couldn't help it anymore.

"You want to tell us where you really were and why there was a fake message from you saying you went to Mystic Falls?" he asked.

She sighed, walking out into the room.

"Probably Gabriel's idea of a joke. I went off to talk to him about things." she said.

"What things?"

She stared at Dean with a frustrated look.

"Things, okay? Catching up! We haven't had much time to do that lately." She shrugged, looking tired of him interrogating her.

"And you just thought it was okay for you to take off and leave us here alone during a hunt?" Dean demanded angrily, leaning forward.

Elena quieted, biting her lip slightly. The annoyance faded from her eyes and she walked to where he was sitting, taking his hand and sitting beside him. She reached out and took his hand.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that it would get bad. I was just talking to Gabriel. I came back at the first sign of trouble. Please don't be angry with me, Dean." She said, reaching out to stroke his cheek.

He stared at her for a moment, feeling himself being swayed by her pleading eyes and soft voice.

"Just don't leave like that again, please. You know how much trouble we've gotten in when we've separated." He said.

"I know. I won't." she agreed, looking down as if she was ashamed.

"Hey."

Elena's eyes flickered up and Dean smiled slightly at her.

"There's nothing to forgive. I love you." he said.

"I love you too." She smiled back, leaning in to press her lips to his.

Sam watched on strangely, wondering how on earth Elena managed to get Dean to calm down so easily when he was so angry with her for leaving.

* * *

She was cleaning up the dishes in the kitchen when Sam walked in.

"Hey, I'm sorry to freak you out earlier. I didn't mean to." He said, leaning against the cabinets.

Elena turned her head to stare at him.

"You didn't freak me out. After all we've seen, Sam, do you really think that I can be freaked out by you passing out?" she shrugged, smiling slightly.

He stared at her for a moment.

"Yeah, you know I'm surprised you haven't lectured me about being more careful about this wall. Usually you'd be jumping down my throat. Are you all right?" he asked.

Elena let out a laugh and his brow furrowed further.

"I'm fine, Sam. I just thought that you might want a reprieve with how much I knew that Dean would be jumping all over you. Would you rather I jumped down your throat?" Elena asked, smirking over at him.

Sam regarded her with slightly squinted eyes, still getting a strange feeling from her.

"You sure you're all right?" he asked.

Her smiled faded a bit and she stared deep into his eyes.

"Why do you ask, Sam?" Elena said seriously.

"I just want to make sure." He said.

She smiled slightly and turned, wiping her hands on a towel. Then she leaned in and reached up, brushing a piece of hair off of his forehead before stroking his cheek.

"I'm fine, Sam. Don't worry about me." she said in a soft voice before sliding past him and into the study.

Sam stared after her with a slightly confused look but he suddenly felt better about the situation. He shrugged and moved to the fridge, pulling out a beer.

Bobby and Dean were discussing the last case when she walked in. She slid onto the couch next to Dean and laid her head on his shoulder.

"I'm bored. Can we go do something?" she asked, reaching out to take his hand.

Dean looked over at her as she lifted her head.

"What were you thinking?" he asked.

She thought for a moment before a slow, sly smile spreaded across her face.

"I have a really good idea."

Dean stared at her for a moment before grinning as well.

"I like that idea." He said, snagging her hand.

Bobby stared at them, looking slightly uncomfortable, as they ran out of the room sporting matching lustful gazes directed at each other.

"Well I'm glad I wasn't talking or nothing." He grumbled.

He looked up as Sam walked in looking slightly confused and thoughtful.

"What is it? Your head acting up again?" Bobby asked.

"No but… something weird just happened." He said.

* * *

Elena and Dean crashed through the door onto the bed, kissing furiously and divesting each other of unnecessary clothing. They collapsed on the bed and Elena quickly flipped them over, clad only in her bra and underwear. It was black lace and something Dean had never seen before.

"I didn't know you owned those." He said.

"I didn't before today. Thought them up just for you." she said, running her hand down his chest.

When she got to his abdomen, her hand curled up and she dragged her nails lightly down the muscles, making him quiver underneath her. He pushed himself up and claimed her mouth roughly, knotting his fingers in her hair to pull her closer.

"No holding back." she breathed as he kissed down her neck.

* * *

"So… you were suspicious of her?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, I mean I thought she was acting weird and then I didn't. Then earlier, Dean was mad at her and then suddenly he wasn't anymore. It was a really quick turnaround, especially for Dean. Is something weird happening? Do you think it has anything to do with her sleepwalking?" Sam asked.

"Maybe. So tell me everything that happened with Dean and with you." the older hunter said.

Sam told him the entire story and something lit up in Bobby's eyes.

"Both times your attitudes turned around, she was touching you, right?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah, I guess." Sam shrugged.

They heard a loud thump from upstairs followed by a gleeful laugh from Elena.

"We gotta get her away from Dean." Bobby decided, standing up and hurrying towards the stairs.

When they opened the door without knocking, both of them cursed that decision when they got a glimpse of them among the sheets of the bed tangled together with almost no clothing on.

"Shit!" Dean cursed, yanking the blankets over them as Sam clapped a hand over his eyes and Bobby looked up at the ceiling.

"Something's going on. We need both of you downstairs." Bobby said.

"What? Now?" Dean demanded.

"Yes, now." Bobby said.

They both stared at them with disbelief.

* * *

Several minutes later, they were back in the living room. Dean and Elena were wearing matching murderous expressions as they glared at Sam and Bobby.

"Something is going on with you, Elena." Sam said.

"What do you mean?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"You've got some sort of influence that you're using by accident. You did it with Dean first and then Sam in the kitchen." Bobby said.

"What?" Dean scoffed. "That's crazy."

"Is it? Listen, you've always heard everyone saying stuff about the Petrova influence. You've always wondered what that was. What if this is it?" Sam said, looking at Elena.

She stared back and forth between him and Bobby, chewing on her lower lip.

"Or it isn't and you're just making a big deal out of nothing." Dean said, taking Elena's hand.

"Could you stop touching her? We think it's transferred by touch." Sam said.

Elena looked over at Dean and back at Sam. Then she slid her hand out of Dean's and scooted away from him.

"You believe them?" Dean asked.

"What if they're right?" she said, sounding concerned. "I mean, everyone kept talking about how I could have whatever I wanted. What if something happened and I can manipulate people now?"

She sounded genuinly concerned and Sam and Bobby breathed a sigh of relief that she seemed like she was bothered by what was happening.

"That sounds crazy." Dean said.

"We live crazy, Dean. It's not out of the question." She said, her eyes wide and a little sad.

Then she looked over at Bobby and Sam.

"I know who to go to to ask about it." She said.

* * *

Sam and Dean were loading up the car as Elena kept her distance, careful not to touch anyone just in case. Bobby stood somewhat near to her watching them.

"I'm sure you'll figure everything out." he said, looking over at her.

"I hope so. If this is a permanent thing, I don't know how I'll…" she cut off, shaking her head as she sounded close to tears. "I just want to know when all of this shit is gonna stop happening. We were supposed to have a few days off, you know? Just a few days."

Bobby shook his head.

"This world just loves to throw curveballs at us. You should know that pretty well by now." He said.

"Yeah, no kidding." She sighed, rubbing her forehead.

Dean looked over and nodded at her as Sam closed the trunk to the Impala.

"I'll see you, Bobby." She said, looking at him with soulful look.

"We'll figure it out, Elena. I promise. In the meantime, I just found some old research you had me do. When you get back, we'll take a look at it, okay?" Bobby said.

She smiled slightly and nodded.

"See you, Bobby." She said, turning to walk towards the car.

"You want front?" Sam asked, giving her a sympathetic look.

Elena looked over at Dean, who was standing by the driver's door.

"I think it's better if I take back. I don't want to take any chances." She sighed, climbing into the backseat and curling into the corner of the seat.

Dean glanced back at her as they pulled out of the drive. She was staring out the window with sad eyes, looking truly taken down by this new development, if it was a development at all. He was still skeptical. As soon as he looked towards the road and there were no eyes on her, the corners of Elena's mouth lifted slightly.

* * *

By the time that they got to Mystic Falls, night was beginning to fall. Because Elena was in no state to really talk to anyone, Dean had called ahead to let everyone know that they were coming. They pulled up to the Salvatore Boarding house right away. When they walked in, a crowd was waiting. Jeremy walked forward to hug Elena but she put her hand out.

"I don't know what's going on with me right now, Jer. But whatever it is we think it's happening through touch. It's best to not." She said warningly.

Her brother looked at her with a slightly sad expression.

"Sorry this is happening to you, Lena." He said.

She smiled back at him.

"We'll figure it out." she assured him.

"Figure what out? We don't even know what the hell is wrong with you and we have the Petrova line experts here." Damon said, walking into the entryway.

"Ah, Damon. Ever the optimist. Thanks for your input." Elena said, staring at him.

He squinted back at her.

"There's something different about you." he said, tilting his head to the side.

"Yeah, I'm forcing people to do what I want without really wanting to. It'll affect a person. Can we get this over with so I can get back to normal?" she snapped, moving past him and into the living room.

Everyone was gathered there, including all of the Originals and, surprisingly enough, Katherine.

"Well well, looks like the freak is back." her lookalike said.

"Go fuck yourself." Elena snapped, not in the mood to deal with Katherine.

"Careful about getting too close, she touches you, you'll really be doing that." Damon warned the older doppelganger.

Elena sighed, turning away from them in time to come face to face with Rebekah.

"If you're going to threaten me or make a bitchy remark…" she began.

"Thank you." the blonde said.

Elena stared at her with surprise.

"Klaus told us everything you did to get us back from those who took us. He said that you took a knife for Elijah. So… thank you." Rebekah said.

"You're welcome." She replied.

"All right, let's figure out what the hell is happening here, shall we?" Dean said.

"First I want to know something." Elena said.

Everyone looked at her.

"How did you manage to get them in a room together without it turning bloody?" she asked, gesturing to Klaus and Katherine.

"Our brother knows that he owes you several times over. In order to best help you, we need Katherine's assistence." Elijah said.

"Oh…" she said, sitting in a chair and leaning forward.

"So… any ideas?" Damon asked the Original vampires and Katherine.

They all exchanged hesitant looks before glancing at Elena.

"None of you?" Elena said, looking at all of them.

"Well, it certainly never happened to me." Katherine shrugged.

"Great. This is wonderful. I just want to know how to stop it." Elena said miserably.

"Are you sure that 'it' is really happening?" Stefan asked just to make sure.

She looked up at him before standing and crossing the room to stand in front of Damon. She reached out and touched his hand.

"Take off your ring and walk outside." she said, staring into his eyes.

Everyone watched with wide eyes as Damon stared straight at her, sliding his ring off and stepping towards the door. She gripped his hand.

"Stop." She ordered and he did as she said. "Put it back on."

Damon put the ring back on his finger and then stared at her with surprise.

"What the hell?" he said.

"Exactly." She nodded, turning to face everyone else who looked shocked.

She sighed, walking to the chair and sitting back down. Dean looked as though he wanted to walk to her to comfort her but he was hesitant to do so now that it was offiicially confirmed what she could do.

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Dean asked as they walked downstairs. "I've been in this place and I can guarantee you it isn't fun."

He was keeping his distance at her request.

"It's getting stronger, Dean. Whatever is happening to me… until Bonnie figures out what it is, it's best that I keep locked up. Just in case." She said.

"You sure you don't want to call Gabriel? Or Cas?" Dean asked.

"No." she said, shaking her head. "I don't want to bother Cas and this all started after I talked to Gabriel. What if this is his idea of a trick? I really don't want to entertain the idea but… this is scaring me, Dean, and I don't want to think that he is the one who is causing it. So I would rather just figure this out and fast." She said.

They looked into the cell to see Jeremy, Damon, and Caroline finishing up drawing the sigils to keep her inside. They were hoping that it would work because the holy fire circle worked on her before.

Once she was in the cell, she turned to see Dean standing there with a sad look.

"Don't worry. We will figure this out." Elena said confidently.

"I should be the one telling you that." he said.

She smiled slightly and watched as he shut the door. When he turned to walk upstairs, she sat on the cot and leaned back against the wall.

**Black Sheep – Gin Wigmore**

"I have to admit, when I fixed you up, this is not how I expected to find you." a female voice said as the barefoot brunette in a white dress stepped out of the shadows.

"It's experimental." Elena said, smirking at her.

Then she glanced at the door.

"You do know that there are vampires here? They have super hearing." Elena said.

"They may not be descended from me but that doesn't mean I can't affect them somewhat. They can't hear anything coming from this room." the woman said.

"Neat trick." she said, nodding with approval.

"Didn't I tell you that I had chaos in mind? This is pretty… boring." The other female said, sitting on the cot next to her.

"Like I said, I'm doing an experiment. I'm seeing how long it'll take them to realize that they're doing exactly what I want them to do without me having to even touch them. Let me have my fun, I never get to manipulate people." Elena said defensively.

"Exactly what you want them to do? You're locked in a cell with sigils on the walls keeping you in here. This doesn't exactly sound like an ideal situation." She said with a skeptical look.

"If you'll notice, I didn't exactly give them the right sigils to paint on the wall. Trust me, I'll wreak havoc on this town soon enough. Irreversible havoc, if I have anything to say about it." Elena promised her.

"See that you do." The other woman said, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

She reached down and took Elena's hand, dropping something cold into it before she stood to walk off.

"You never did tell me who you were." Elena said, stopping her without looking at the object in her hand.

She turned to look at her.

"I think you know who I am." She said.

"Mother of All, I got that much. But don't you have a name?"

The other woman smiled slightly.

"I do. You'll know it soon enough." she said cryptically before walking back into the shadows and disappearing.

Elena sighed and glanced down at the object in her hand, inspecting it. Then she looked up at the ceiling, curious about what was going on upstairs. She smirked slightly before disappearing.

* * *

"Finding anything?" Caroline asked as Bonnie looked through the third grimoire.

"Nothing. It would be helpful if we could know things about the original Petrova curse but since the original witch's grimoire isn't available… it looks like we're stuck with guessing." The witch said, closing the old book and leaning back with a sigh.

"Dean, I know that she said she didn't want to but I think that calling the angels is the best thing to do at this point." Sam said.

"Sam, you know that if Elena is saying not to get the angels involved, we don't get the angels involved." Dean argued.

"Yeah, that's the weird thing about it, Dean. Can't you see that? She trusts the angels more than any of us have, especially Gabriel. So why isn't she wanting to get them to help her out?" Sam said.

Elena listened from the next room with annoyance burning through her. She was surprised that it took them this long to question her decision to not call the angels. She narrowed her eyes slightly as she heard Dean sigh.

"Fine. But I'm gonna let her kick your ass when she gets pissed. I'm only doing this cause I'm worried about her." Dean said.

She narrowed her eyes slightly and disappeared, reappearing in the cell. She leaned down and pulled the hidden knife out of her boot slowly. She'd willingly given up her dagger for their peace of mind but they didn't know she had this one on her.

Upstairs, Dean had his eyes closed.

"Gabriel. We need you. So get your feathery ass down here and do it quick." He said.

There was a few moments of silence as everyone looked around. Then the sound of feathers filled the room and they all turned to see Gabriel leaning against the doorway.

"You might be the lover of my favorite little human-angel hybrid but that doesn't mean I won't…"

Gabriel was cut off by Dean throwing him against the wall out of anger.

"What the hell did you do to her, huh? Is this one of your tricks? Because no one is laughing! Fix it!" he growled.

Gabriel shoved him off with a glare.

"Pray tell, what are you talking about?" he said through gritted teeth.

"You don't know?" Sam said, stepping forward.

"If I did, would I be asking?" Gabriel snapped.

"She went and saw you and now she's all out of whack. Something weird is happening to her and we want to know what." Dean said in an anger-laced voice.

"Saw me?" the archangel questioned, glancing between all of them. "What are you talking about, Winchesters?"

Before either of the brothers could say a word, all of the vampires' heads snapped up.

"Do you smell that?" Damon said, looking at the stairs.

The rest nodded and Dean knew that there was only one thing that the vampires would all smell. They rushed downstairs, crowding the hallway of the cellar as they reached the cell door. Gabriel was right beside Dean as they wrenched the door open. Elena turned and they saw the sigil on the wall one second too late. Her hand slammed down on it and a bright light filled the air, blinding the others as Gabriel disappeared. When it was gone, they all stared at her with surprise, seeing the blood dripping down her hand and onto the ground.

"I said no angels." She said, staring coldly at them.

"Elena… what the hell?" Dean said, staring at her with shock.

"I was willing to play nice. I didn't hurt a single one of you. I could have let Damon walk out into that sun. All I wanted… was no angels." She said, wiping the blood on her hand off on her pants as she healed the wound. "Now… I'm pissed."

Her hands flicked out and suddenly everyone was thrown away from the door, clearing a path for her. She didn't need it, knowing that she could zap out if she wanted to but she strode forward anyways.

"Mother was right. This experiment was boring anyways." She sighed.

They all stared with shock as she walked right past them. Jeremy and Bonnie were waiting upstairs and they took in her bloody appearance with wide-eyes.

"Elena?" Jeremy questioned.

She turned her head to look at him.

"See you later, Jer." She said with a smirk that didn't look anything like her usually teasing look.

Her eyes were cold and she looked worse than Katherine's devious looks. She walked out of the house and looked up at the darkening sky.

"Let the chaos begin." She murmured, blinking her eyes and disappearing from the spot.

* * *

"How the hell did she get past the sigils?" Damon said as they all stood in the cell looking around.

"She's the one who drew them out for us, genius. She probably gave us the wrong sigils on purpose." Dean shot back.

"Is she possessed?" Jeremy asked with uncertainty, hovering at the door.

"No, it's not possible. Her tattoo is still in place." Dean said.

"Do you think that Gabriel was lying and the angels got a hold of her? Like they did with Cas that one time?" Sam asked.

"No, this is different than Cas. If I'm willing to bet, I'd say that something is in her head." Dean said.

"But you said…" Stefan began.

"Not a demon. Lucifer could still get in her head with the Devil's Trap tattoo on her." he said.

"Well, let's worry about the what later. Right now, we have to figure out what she's doing." Sam said.

"I can do a location spell." Bonnie volunteered.

"Great." Dean nodded.

* * *

**Ain't No Rest for the Wicked – Cage the Elephant**

Elena looked up at the building with an appraising look. At first, she was going to go to the Grill in Mystic Falls but when she walked in, the crowd was filled with families and very few people her age. It would be no fun at all. That's how she ended up in a bar a few towns over. She looked down at her clothing and blinked, changing it into an appropriate outfit for what she had planned. Her hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back in perfect curls. She didn't have to look to know that make-up was perfectly in place on her face down to the red stain on her lips. She let the necklace that the 'Mother of All' gave her slide over her head to rest on her neck. The pendant lay just over her heart. When she walked in, she glanced around the bar to see that it contained a much better crowd that the Grill had.

Several eyes fell on her as she strode up to the bar and slid onto a barstool. The bartender turned from where he was setting up glasses on a rack after drying them off.

"Can I help you?" he asked, letting his eyes gaze over her.

Elena leaned forward with a slight smirk on her blood-red lips.

"I'd like a shot of tequila."

He nodded.

"I hate to ask, but can I see some ID?" he asked.

She tilted her head to the side and reached out to take his hand, pulling it towards her.

"You don't really need to, right?" she said.

His eyes glazed over for a moment and he nodded.

"Of course not."

A smile spreaded across her face.

"Great." She said.

He turned away and quickly poured the shot before handing it to her. She downed instantly, grinning at him as she slammd the shotglass onto the counter.

"So what's a pretty girl like you doing in here?" he asked.

"I just want to have some fun." Elena shrugged.

* * *

Bonnie used Jeremy's blood on the map and then she held her hands over it, chanting softly. They all watched with stressed looks as she did so. They were caught between worrying about Elena's safety and wondering about the safety of others around her.

"She's… not in Mystic Falls anymore." the witch said, focusing on the map.

Her eyes slid closed and she concentrated.

"She's in Newington. At a bar." She said.

"Well let's hope she stays there. Come on." Dean said.

They were all piling into cars in the next moment, even the Originals and Katherine, who owed Elena their lives. No one was willing to be left behind when it came to her.

* * *

**Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is - Jet**

It hadn't taken long to influence the entire bar to join her in her fun. Everytime someone new came in, they were directed to her for her to give them the urge to let loose. Some of them had found that they couldn't resist each other and that was fine with her as long as they didn't start having sex on the pool tables. Some of them were simply drinking and laughing together. The rest were either watching her dance or dancing with her. Clutching a bottle of expensive whiskey in her hand, she was twirling around the bar to the music blaring out of the speakers. Her hair flew around her as she spun and swung her hips.

Every once in a while, one of the males would dare to dart forward and attempt to dance with her. They would last for a few minutes until their drunkennes overtook them and they staggered backwards. Elena didn't react, simply continuing her free movements. Her heels were surprisingly no problem with the slight tipsyness she was experiencing. She knew that the group would be heading her way and that they would be there any second but she wasn't concerned about it. She'd taken the necessary precautions that they wouldn't get anywhere near her just in case they'd somehow discovered a way to fix her. It was unlikely but she knew how resourceful they could be when they needed something.

When the door opened, she knew that it was them. She didn't stop dancing, ignoring their approach into the bar. The rest of the patrons recognized them from the images that she'd put into their heads and immediately formed a barrier between her and them.

"So nice of you to join me." Elena said as the music stuttered to a stop.

She looked to see Damon standing beside the stereo system holding the plug that he'd yanked out.

"Though I do think that was unnecessary." She pointed out before taking a long drink.

Elena turned to face the group and saw them all staring at her with questioning looks.

"What the hell happened to you?" Dean asked, stepping forward.

She smiled at him, sliding through the bodies that were meant to be protecting her.

"At ease." She said simply, causing them to relax and all go to sit down around the bar.

She had faith that they weren't going to attack her.

"It's hard to explain, Dean. But it's not a bad thing, I promise. I'm better than I was before. If you want, I could show you." she said, extending her hand out.

He stared at her with cold eyes.

"Who are you and what have you done with Elena?" he growled.

She laughed and shook her head, walking to sit at the bar.

"Another bottle please, Ryan." She requested of the bartender.

He handed her one dutifully as she slid the empty one onto the counter.

"I am Elena. Not the Elena you're used to, but I am her." she informed them.

They all stared at her with questioning looks. She sighed, opening the bottle of alcohol.

"Think of it in terms of the vampires in the room. Basically, my switch is flipped, metaphorically speaking, of course. I'm still Elena for all intents and purposes. I just don't have those pesky little morals holding me back. I can do anything." She said with a grin.

"And the influence thing?" Sam questioned.

"Well… I didn't exactly flip the switch willingly. The same being who made that happen sort of… gave me steroids." Elena answered.

"Who?" Dean said, ready to throttle whoever made his girl so different.

"Come on, you know the answer to that. I already told you." she said as though it was obvious.

They all thought back and realization dawned on Sam first.

"Mother." He breathed.

"Bingo." Elena confirmed.

"Wait… the Mother-of-Alldragon chick?" Dean said, his brow furrowing.

"Yep! I'm her… how did she put it… weapon." she said, nodding.

"Weapon? For what? Does she think you're going to kill people?" Damon said, squinting at her.

Elena shook her head, pressing her lips together.

"Not that kind of weapon." She corrected him.

"Then what?" Rebekah asked.

Her eyes darted from person to person, not liking that they all seemed to be presenting a united front against her despite the fact that she knew that there was some sort of animosity between everyone there. She would have to change that.

"She doesn't want me killing people or destroying anything. She thinks this world has become too calm… too lazy. She's out to change that. That's where I come in. I am meant to screw things up a little." Elena said simply.

"How do you know this? Is that where you were? Not with Gabriel but with the Mother of All?" Sam asked.

"Well… for a short time, yes. But that's not how I know. She's in here." Elena pointed to her head. "Talking to me… telling me fantastic little pieces of information."

"Like what?" Dean said, furrowing his brow at her.

Elena tilted her head to the side.

"You sure you want to open that can of worms, Dean? It's almost bigger than this bar." She said.

"It doesn't matter. How do we fix you, Elena?" Jeremy asked, pushing forward and starting at her.

She laughed, shaking her head.

"I'd rather talk about the can of worms. You're not gonna fix me, Jer." She said.

Then she fixed her eyes on Dean.

"Hey Sam, did you know that you let Dean turn into a vampire during your soulless adventures?" she said.

Everyone in the room froze and Dean stared at her with an open mouth, shocked to hear that she was doing this. Spilling what the Mother was saying in her head was one thing but telling Sam stuff that could kill him was another.

"Elena don't…" Dean started forward but was stopped by a force that shoved him back.

Sam stared at her with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" he breathed.

"Sammy, no. You can't…"

"Hush Dean. It's Sammy's turn to hear the truth. I'll get to you next." Elena said, cutting him off and he found that he couldn't speak.

"Not this kind of vampire. The other kind. You sat back and let a big bad man with fangs give your brother blood just so that we could get at the alpha vampire. Luckily Samuel had a cure so we could get Dean back to normal. Of course, that didn't stop him from attacking Jo and me. We're all lucky he just bit me, I suppose." Elena said.

"Elena stop!" Caroline yelled, knowing that there was a reason that Dean didn't want her telling Sam this.

She fixed her eyes on the blonde as Sam stared at Dean with tears and apologies filling his eyes.

"Don't get me started on your father, Caroline. We all know he didn't want you. How would he feel, being a part of the founder's council, if he knew his precious girl was a vampire? I think he'd try to kill you but hey, what do I know about hunters?" Elena said without hesitation.

Caroline stared at her with shock and a tear slid down her face as Tyler pulled her back into his arms.

"But none of this is nearly as important as the things that I know now that I've got a being who is thousands of years old in my head. Like… Lucifer… for instance." Elena said, standing up.

Dean stared at her with wide eyes as she stared back at him.

"Oh yeah, it's your turn, sweetheart." She said, giving him his voice back. "Did you really think that there would be no consequences to giving Sammy his soul back? Well, other than the obvious and inevitable fall of the great wall of Sam? Lucifer's box isn't everlasting, baby. You punch at that thing enough and, well, it starts to tear. And that's exactly what happened when you sent Death down to retrieve Sammy's pathetic little soul. It tore and now… well… I hope you liked Lucifer's tour of our world last time because he's comin' back."

Dean and Sam stared at her with shocked eyes as everyone else caught up to what she was saying.

"What about…" Dean trailed off, his voice rough.

"Michael? Oh he's already out." Elena said with a shrug. "But the thing is, he's been out as long as Sam has. God himself pulled him out. I've known that for a while, actually. Michael was keeping me from remembering except for when I was with him. That explains the memory gaps and sleepwalking, by the way. Speaking of God…"

She was cut off when a flutter of wings filled the room and everyone stared behind her with surprise.

"Dad?" Dean said, shocked.

Elena sighed, rolling her eyes before turning to face Michael.

"Come to play with me?" she asked innocently.

"Not quite." He answered, reaching out towards her.

Suddenly her arms shoved out and he flew backwards.

"Not so fast." She said, backing away.

Two arms grabbed her from nowhere and she knew that it was Gabriel.

"No!" she struggled with him, hearing the voice in her head encouraging her to fight back, not to let them take her back.

Michael appeared in front of her again and his hand flew out, pressing to her forehead. She screamed as an intense pain filled her head. Someone shouted her name but she couldn't put a name or face to the voice past the pain. The voice in her head was screaming until it suddenly cut off and everything was silent. Then, as if floodgates were opened, everything came rushing back and she was suddenly crying out for a different reason. Gabriel let go of her gently and she fell to her knees, clutching at her head as everything that made her Elena Gilbert filled her being once again. She felt hands on her trying to lift her but she ignored them.

Suddenly, her head snapped up and she saw Gabriel and Michael standing side-by-side. One benefit of the Mother-of-All getting in her head was the fact that there was no longer any blockage from her memories of the angels. She knew of their manipulation of her and she was furious.

"Leave." She said hoarsely.

They stared down at her, Michael impassive and Gabriel regretful. She didn't repeat herself, just staring at them until they both disappeared. Elena's head dropped again and she let out a soft sob as Dean lifted her into his arms.

* * *

**Leave My Body – Florence + the Machine**

She looked up from where she was sitting on the bed. Dean walked in and held out a warm cup of tea for her that Caroline made downstairs. They were back at the Gilbert house. The Originals weren't there as well as Katherine. She was curled into her blankets.

"I don't need tea." She sighed, setting it on the bedside table.

"You should drink something." Dean said, sitting on the bed.

"I just want to be alone." Elena said miserably, turning her face away from him.

Dean sighed.

"Do you remember everything?" he asked.

She nodded without looking at him.

"Everything I did, everything I said…" she confirmed.

"You know it wasn't your fault." Dean said.

"Sure, yeah. That doesn't change anything. I could have hurt someone very seriously." She said.

"But you didn't." he said, reaching out to take her hand.

She shifted away from him, still hesitant to touch anyone.

"Please, Dean, I just want to be alone." She sighed.

He stared at her for a moment before standing.

"If I couldn't blame myself for what I did as a vampire, you can't blame yourself for this." he said.

Then he leaned down and kissed the top of her head before turning to walk out. Elena watched him go and, when she was certain that he was gone, she reached under the t-shirt she was wearing and pulled out the necklace. She stared at it, running her fingers over the cool metal and gemstone. This necklace wasn't just given to her by the Mother-of-All. It was attached to her somehow. And she was going to find out how even if she had to do it alone.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope you didn't hate it too much like I did. It is laying the groundwork for some more revealing mythology into the Petrova doppelganger and Elena's roots that will be revealed over time. Please review!**

**I have decided to do the mannequin episode so there's that. **


	19. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to RHatch89, SwanQueen4055, Hollywood17, JMHUW, Nyssandria, CherrySin, thestralboggart, RippahGoneWolf, DrawingMyHeartOut, TheElegantFaerie, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, imusic247, Dean Winchester Rocks, and chiwi for reviewing! **

**Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

"Purgatory?"

"Seriously?"

"Will Elena be okay?"

"That's not possible."

"Purgatory?"

"You've drunk one too many whiskeys, my friend."

"Shut up, Damon."

"Shut up yourself, dick."

"Eloquent, Salvatore."

"No one asked you, Klaus."

"I mean that's really not possible."

"Purgatory?"

Dean looked at Sam for help, who shrugged and gestured for him to continue.

"Yes. Purgatory." He sighed, looking at the gathering of people that they had in the living room of the Gilbert house.

His eyes glanced towards the direction of the stairs and he sincerely wished that Elena were down there to help them explain what was going on. She was always good at explaining all of the weird things to her friends and family. Unfortunately, it had been three days and she was still refusing to come down from her room and she was also refusing to let anyone stay in there longer than a few moments when they checked to make sure that she was still alive. Every once I a while they would go and find her with food that she had zapped out of the room to get. It made them feel better that she was at least feeding herself.

"What is it with you? Do you attract the weird or does it search you out?" Caroline said with disbelief.

"I've been asking myself that for years." Dean answered her.

"So the thing that took control of Elena… was from Purgatory?" Jeremy asked.

Dean and Sam nodded together.

"We tried to prevent her from coming through but we weren't able to. She's called the Mother-of-All and we know almost nothing about her." Sam said.

"Why did she possess Elena? I mean what attracted her to Elena?" Bonnie wondered.

"Elena is a shining beacon of all things supernatural. For some reason, everything ends up being attracted to her. I'm sure that you've had experience with that." Dean said.

Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement. When they heard the sound of soft footsteps, all of them froze and turned to see Elena standing in the doorway. They all stared at her, surprised to see her out of her room.

"What's going on?" she asked, looking around at everyone.

"We were just filling them in on what's been going on." Dean said.

Elena fixed her eyes on him.

"No." she said, shaking her head.

"What?" Caroline said, saying what all of the rest of them were thinking.

"Stop it. You aren't telling them anything. You aren't getting them involved, not this time. Keep them out of it." she said, her voice almost as cold and detached as it had been when the Mother had overtaken her.

If they hadn't heard the fear trembling in her voice as well, they would have thought that she was possessed again.

"Elena we deserve to know." Jeremy argued.

"No, Jeremy. I am not going to let you be put in danger because of this. This isn't an argument. They are not involved and that's that." she snapped, turning to walk off.

Everyone else stared at her with shock but Dean pushed himself off of the couch.

"Hey." He caught her arm just as she was about to disappear upstairs again.

She turned and looked at him.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"I'm keeping them safe, surely you can understand that." she said, obviously trying to keep the emotions out of her voice.

"Yeah, I can understand trying to keep them safe. What I can't understand is why you're acting like this. Why are you shutting yourself away? Come out. Talk to us. We can help you with whatever you're dealing with." Dean said.

Elena's free hand went to her throat and he noticed a silver chain around it that led into her shirt where it disappeared.

"I can't. Just leave me alone." She said, backing away and turning to run upstairs.

He watched her go with a sigh, knowing that she would come to him when she wanted to. It took him a while to act normal again after his development of fangs and he knew that she would come back eventually. Elena leaned against her closed door inhaling deeply. She waited until her head was clear again before she walked to the bed and sat on it, pulling on her shoes. She threw her hair into a ponytail before grabbing her phone and shoving it into her purse. Then she disappeared and reappeared in the living room of the house. The woman sitting in the chair jumped slightly, putting her hand to her heart.

"Elena. You give me a heart attack every time you do that." Elle Visyak said, shaking her head and setting down the glass of water that she was drinking.

"I'm sorry." Elena said softly, pulling the chain out from underneath her shirt.

She slid it over her head and held it out to the woman.

"Ah, you're finally allowing me to see the mysterious necklace." Elle said, taking it and holding it up to get a good look at it.

"You'll understand why I'm hesitant." Elena said.

"Of course. It obviously has value." The other woman said.

"I can't thank you enough for agreeing to help me." Elena said, walking to sit in a chair as well, curling her feet underneath her.

"It's no problem. You returned my sword in one piece. I figure I owe you for that." The professor said with grin as she inspected the pendant on the chain. "Though I don't know why you didn't bring this to Bobby. He could do the same research just as easily as I can."

Elena bit her lip, looking down at her hands.

"Bobby and the other two… they'll have questions. Ones that I can't answer right now." She said softly.

"Can't or won't?" Elle asked.

She glanced up at the older woman.

"Both." she admitted.

"Well, I'm glad to be your hideout until you work up the urge to tell those boys what you know. Do you mind leaving this with me overnight?"

Elena shook her head even though she was dying to rip it out of the woman's hands and put it back on where it was safe.

"I think it may have something to do with my family. It might help you to know. They're the Petrovas." she said.

"That might help a lot. Check back in tomorrow and I'll let you know what I have." Elle said, smiling at her.

Elena smiled back hesitantly, relieved that she found someone qualified who would help her without asking questions.

"Thank you." she said.

* * *

When she appeared back in her room, she sat on her bed munching on the fries that she'd stopped to pick up. She heard noise from the bathroom and assumed that it was Jeremy. The door opened and her eyes widened when she saw Dean walk out with nothing on but a pair of jeans hanging low on his hips and his hair wet and messy. Their eyes met and he stopped, staring back at her.

"Fries?" she said, holding the bag out for him.

He walked forward slowly. Instead of taking some food to eat, he pulled the bag out of her hands and set it on the bed before sitting next to her. His hand reached out and he put it on her cheek. Its warmth made her skin tingle and she found herself wanting to lean into him. Dean didn't say anything, just watching her. Their eyes didn't leave each other, just staring.

"I know you don't want to talk." He finally said, brushing his thumb over her cheek.

Elena blinked and he saw a little bit of wetness fill her eyes.

"I don't want to make you talk. But when you're ready, if you're ready, I'm here, okay?"

She bit her lip and hesitated before nodding.

"We have a case. Bobby called us. You up for it?" he asked.

Elena nodded again.

"Yeah, I am. Can't let you two go out without me. You won't last a day." She said, a slight twinkle in her eye that showed him that she was kidding.

Dean grinned, shrugging his shoulders.

"It's why we keep you around." he said, pulling her up to stand.

* * *

They walked into the university science lab one after another, Elena squished between Sam and Dean. The janitor was on the floor covered with plastic. When they walked forward, Dean caught sight of a dummy that had an accurate model of all of the muscles and internal organs. The fake eyes stared out creepily at them.

"Check it out." Dean gestured to it with a grin back at them.

"This thing's friggin' awesome!"

He pulled the heart out and turned, holding it out to Sam as they both stared at him with unimpressed looks.

"Be my valentine." Dean said, grinning wider.

"Dude, we're working. Put it back." Sam sighed, shaking his head at his older brother's immaturity.

"Have a heart." He said, holding back laughter.

Elena bit her lip to keep from smiling slightly at his actions.

"Dean!" Sam said, exasperated.

Dean finally let out a laugh.

"Buzz kill." He said, placing the heart back in the dummy.

Then he sniffed the air, looking around.

"You smell sulfur?"

Sam stared at him for a moment.

"Yeah, we're in a science lab." He said as if it was obvious.

"Right." Dean nodded, turning to glance around.

Sam pulled out his EMF meter and switched it on as Elena and Dean drifted off a little to look for anything weird.

"Hey." Sam caught their attention and they looked to see the EMF going off like crazy.

"Whoa. Ghosts gone wild. Something's up in here." Dean said, glancing around the room.

"Question is, what?" the other brother said.

Dean caught sight of something, nudging his brother.

"Sam, good news." He pointed up at the security camera. "Big brother's watching."

They went into the room with the screens and Sam worked on the footage of the previous night. He fast-forwarded until they saw the deceased janitor cleaning in the lab. They watched carefully as he cleaned for a while. Then the screen gliched once as he glanced up before completely fuzzing out. When it came back on, the janitor was lying on the ground dead and there was no one left in the room.

"Well… there goes that idea." Dean sighed as they all three straightened up.

"All right, how about Elena and I go check into a motel to do some research on the building and you go ask the janitor's girlfriend if anything weird happened?" Dean suggested as they walked out towards the Impala.

Sam sighed, nodding.

"You take the Impala. Elena will hop us right over. Don't hurt my baby." Dean said, pointing at him threateningly.

"I'll be careful." Sam assured him.

* * *

When they walked into the motel room, Elena immediately ditched her heels and slid her jacket off and collapsed on the bed, leaning her head against the headboard. Dean pulled out his laptop and sat at the table, turning it on to check stuff out. Elena pulled out her phone and texted Sam their room number.

"You get any spooky feelings at the college that can give us a hint?" Dean asked, glancing over at her.

She shook her head, shrugging.

"You ever gonna talk again?"

Elena narrowed her eyes at him even though she could see the teasing glint in his eye.

"I'm kidding. All right… checking on the building." He muttered as he typed in the name of the college.

About thirty minutes later, they were watching a random show on the TV when Sam came in.

"Hey. So, what'd you find out from the, uh, mop jockey's girlfriend?" Dean asked, muting the program as they looked up at Sam.

"Nothing. Just how great he was… went to church, donated to charity, rubbed her feet during Glee." Sam sighed, sitting on his bed.

"I just threw up in my mouth." Dean informed him as Elena grimaced.

"Sorry." Sam said, shrugging his jacket off. "Anyway, I checked his record… spotless. What about the science building? Anything?"

"Built in '05. Nothing weird about the land. Before this, the biggest mishap was some genius accidentally spilled sulfuric acid on his crotch." Sam winced and looked down at his pants at Dean's words. "They don't even dissect anything good in there. Anything bigger than Kermit, they use an iPad."

"So we got nothing?" Sam confirmed.

"Yeah, a big steaming pile of it." Dean nodded.

* * *

Elena sat on the bed as the boys slept. Her eyes were fixed on the door that she knew someone was beyond. They'd been there for an hour and she'd been alert ever since they showed up. It was impossible not to feel his presence as her grace flared up with it there. But she didn't want to walk out. She didn't want to face him, to face the disappointment. Finally she slid out of the bed and padded to the door, opening it quietly and slipping out. Sure enough, he was standing there patiently.

"I thought I made it clear that I didn't want to see you." Elena said, walking up to him fearlessly.

"I wanted to make sure that you were all right." Gabriel replied.

She tilted her head to the side.

"Why don't you just look into my head to find out?"

He had the decency to look guilty at her words.

"It wasn't my idea…" he began.

"What happened to you, Gabriel? What happened to the angel who was on our side, huh? Who would love to stick it to Michael? Why are you standing behind him now? Why are you letting him call the shots?" she demanded.

"I'm not standing behind anyone. I'm standing with them." He sighed.

Elena narrowed her eyes at him.

"Is it true? About your father? About Chuck? That they're… the same?"

Gabriel nodded slowly and she scoffed, shaking her head.

"You know, I almost wish that I didn't remember like before. I wish that I could wipe it from my mind so that I didn't have to decide whether or not to tell the people that I love that the God who abandoned them was there watching from sidelines the entire time without doing a single thing." She said, rubbing her forehead.

"Elena…"

"Does he even realize how much hurt it's going to bring everyone? Dean? Sam? Bobby? Cas?" she cut Gabriel off as she whirled around.

"You can't tell Cas." He said in a warning tone.

"The hell I can't! You don't ever get to tell me what I can and can't do again. You lost that right when you betrayed my trust, Gabriel. So you and your father can take your good intentions and your guilty conscience and shove them up your asses while you both fuck off. I thought you were with us, Gabriel. You're just like the rest of them. Uriel. Zachariah. Michael. God. You use humans for your purposes and then when you're done with us you throw us away for greener pastures. Let me tell you right now, if Cas doesn't have a place in your precious family, he sure as hell has one in ours. You should be out there helping him fight a civil war against Raphael, not hiding behind Daddy and big brother. Go to hell, Gabriel." She snapped, letting out all of her frustrations on him.

To his credit, he didn't say a word during he rant.

"Do you feel better?" he asked.

"Not even close." She said miserably, turning to walk off.

"I can tell you about the Mother." He said, stopping her.

"I don't need your help. I'll figure it out myself." She threw over her shoulder before walking to the motel room.

* * *

The next morning, they woke up to a call saying that there was another crime scene. They immediately got up and took turns taking showers. When Elena got out and simply braided her hair over her shoulder, she walked out to see Dean struggling with his tie. It was the tie that Caroline got him for Christmas during their year off. Elena bit back a smile and walked up to him, shoving his hands out of the way. Dean stared at her as she stared at the tie, moving her hands deftly as she tied it.

When they walked into the clothing factory that was several towns over, Elena followed Sam as he pulled out the EMF. Another man was murdered in a bloody way and there was no sign of anyone else being there once again. The police had already taken a look at the security tapes and found nothing on them once again with the same disruption. Dean walked over to take a look at the body. The device did nothing until they approached a large bin full of pieces of mannequins with a fully put together mannequin standing beside it. Elena stared at it, getting a creepy feeling from it just like she had with the anatomy dummy at the university lab.

"Dean?" Sam called him over.

"Yeah?" he said, walking up.

"This thing's humming." The younger brother informed the older, gesturing to the EMF that was going crazy near the mannequins.

''Hmm." Dean murmured, glancing around.

"Wait." They both looked at Sam. "That anatomy dummy you were molesting at the lab."

"Excuse me?" Dean said, staring at him.

"What if that's what this is about?" Sam said, looking between them as he shut off the EMF.

"What exactly are you accusing me of?" Dean said, squinting at him.

"I don't mean that." he sighed. "I mean, there was an anatomy dummy there, and here..."

Dean and Elena got what he meant at the same time.

"You're joking." Dean scoffed, shaking his head.

He looked at Sam to see that he looked completely serious.

"You're not joking. Okay, uh, so, what, we've got… we've got a bunch of killer dolls like... Chucky?" Dean said, turning to face the mannequin. "I mean, come on, that's… that's just... friggin' creepy."

They all stared at the blank face of the mannequin and felt cold chills run down their spines as if their bodies were agreeing with the creepiness of it.

"I mean, if ghosts can possess humans and… and move objects, why can't they possess this?" Sam suggested, gesturing to the mannequin.

"I suppose. But riddle me this, bat boy… ghosts aren't exactly known for hopping county lines, right?" Dean said, facing Sam.

"True." Sam admitted, looking perplexed.

"This one hits up a college and now a factory, what, three towns over?"

"Doesn't add up." Sam agreed.

"So we dig." Dean nodded.

He turned back and glanced at the mannequin.

"Over there."

He waved his hand back and forth in front of the blank, unseeing face.

"I don't like the way Kim Cattrall's lookin' at me."

* * *

They sat in the office of the factory pouring over employee records and articles to do with the factory.

"Well, this dead guy's as squeaky clean as the last dead guy. I can't find a speck of dirt on him. You?" Dean asked the other two.

Elena was sitting on the couch with him, her feet propped up in his lap as she searched around on the laptop. Sam was seated at the desk doing the same thing. Both of them shook their heads at the same time.

"Nothing." Sam sighed.

After a few moments, Elena sat up a little straighter and both of them looked surprised that she was talking.

"Well, here's a speck. A seamstress named Rose Brown went missing over a year ago. The police just gave up on her. Last seen at the factory, presumed dead. Survived by sister Isabel." She read.

"Fifty bucks… vengeful spirit." Dean decided.

"Pay sis a visit?" Sam questioned.

Dean shrugged.

"All right." Sam said, moving to stand up.

Dean and Elena did the same. Both she and Sam looked at him as his phone began ringing. He pulled it out and furrowed his brow.

"I don't recognize the number." He said before pressing talk and holding it up to his ear.

"Hello?" he said.

"D-Dean?" a young man's voice came over the phone.

"Yeah this is Dean. Who is this?" Dean replied, confused.

"It's Ben. Ben Braeden."

His eyes widened and he turned to Sam with a startled look. Elena watched them with confusion on her face as well.

"Ben? What are you…" Dean said, unsure of how to respond to this call.

Sam's eyes widened as well as he immediately recognized the situation for what it was. His eyes flashed to Elena and back to Dean.

"Something's wrong with my mom. I didn't know who else to call and I remember that you told us to call if anything weird happened." The boy said desperately.

Dean was still shocked, wondering how in the hell the kid even really remembered much about him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"It's bad." Ben said.

Dean immediately got a not-so-great feeling.

"Define bad." He said.

"She's been acting weird. Angry and… and violent. I don't know what's wrong with her but she's not my mom. Please just… just come help me. I-I don't know what to do." Ben pleaded.

"All right…" Dean sighed, rubbing his forehead. "… let me call you back."

"But…"

"Five minutes."

He clicked the end button and looked up at Elena and Sam.

"That was the kid of someone we helped on a case a few years ago. I left my number with them. They're in trouble." Dean said.

"What's going on?" Sam asked.

"I don't know yet. Ben is really freaked out though." Dean said.

"You should go." Elena said and they looked at her.

"If the little kid called you it's obviously important. You should go and see what's going on. Sam and I can work on the case." Elena said.

"Really?" Dean said.

"Yeah. I can send you wherever it is so there won't be any travel time." Elena said.

Truth be told, she was beginning to feel guilty for her cold attitude after everything that happened. She could tell that Dean was concerned and that he wanted to go help these people. Dean glanced up at Sam who was telling him with his eyes to tell Elena the real situation. He looked back at her.

"Are you sure? I mean we're talking life or death here."

"We can handle it until you get back, Dean." Elena said with certainty.

* * *

"So, you and Rose were close, huh?" Sam asked.

"Very. Our parents died when we were little, so we had each other." Isabel, the suspected ghost's sister, answered as they sat on the couches in her apartment.

Elena was sitting next to Sam and Rose was across from them.

"What was she like?" Elena asked in a soft voice, smiling slightly at the woman to put her at ease.

They could tell that bringing up her sister again after a year was painful.

"Um, kind... giving. She had the biggest heart. But people gave her a hard time." Isabel said.

"How come?" Sam questioned.

"She was shy, a little awkward. I guess that made her an easy target. I feel like I've been defending her my whole life." the woman sighed.

"I'm sure she appreciated it." Elena assured her.

"Well, it went both ways. She did more for me than anybody else ever could. I just miss her." Isabel said sadly.

Elena and Sam nodded and he caught sight of a photo album on the coffee table.

"Um, may I?" he asked, gesturing to it.

"Sure. Please." She nodded.

Sam reached out and opened it as they leaned over it.

"Oh, it's a company Christmas party a couple years back." Isabel realized.

"Wait, you work at Salzman & Sons, too?" Elena asked, glancing up at her.

"Well, everybody works at the factory. That's Rose." She said, pointing at the picture.

Elena noticed something in the picture and one glance at Sam told her that he noticed it as well.

* * *

"Dean, hey, get this. That college janitor? He worked at the factory, too, until last year. Apparently, he quit right after Rose's disappearance." Sam said to Dean over the phone as they walked into the motel room.

"So fair bet something happened to that girl around that factory, so let's call that joint ground zero." Dean said as he was on speaker.

"Right, but it still doesn't explain how a ghost ended up at a college in another zip code." Sam reminded him.

"It's not like she hopped the blue line." Dean said.

"I'm getting changed and then we're headed to the factory. I'll call when we get the whole scoop on Rose." Sam said.

* * *

Dean sighed as he walked up to the door, knocking on it and ringing the doorbell several times. He heard footsteps and it opened to reveal Lisa standing there smiling and looking as happy as can be. She was actually dressed up like she was going out on a date. She stopped short and her eyes widened.

"Oh my God, Dean, what are you doing here?" she said, shocked to see him.

His eyes looked over her and his brow furrowed.

"Well, you look absolutely fine." He said with confusion.

"What's going on?" she said, confused.

Dean looked around.

"I honestly have no idea but I think we may want to talk to your son." He said.

"What?" Lisa said, taken aback by the mention of her kid.

"Ben sent out a 911."

"Why would he do that?" she said, even more surprised if that were possible.

Dean shrugged.

"He's your kid. I just got a distress call saying that you were both in danger."

Lisa stared at him for a moment before stepping aside.

"Come in." she said hesitantly.

* * *

Elena's phone rang as they walked up to the factory. She stopped and pulled it out, seeing that it was Bobby.

"Hey." She said when she answered it.

"Everything all right? I haven't heard from you in a few days." He said.

"Yeah, it's fine. We're just working that case." She said.

"I ain't talkin' about those other two idjts. I'm talking 'bout you. How are you?"

Elena held back her smile at his words.

"I'm fine, Bobby. Thank you for asking." She said.

"All right, if you're sure. Those brothers giving you any trouble?" he asked.

"Not a single bit. Sam and I are actually working the case. Dean got a distress call from an old friend, someone he saved way back." she said.

"Dean what? Who called him?" Bobby asked, sounding confused.

"A kid named Ben." Elena said, looking at Sam questioningly.

He shrugged but she could see a flash of guilt in his eyes. Something was going on.

"Ben? Lisa's Ben?" the older hunter said.

"Who's Ben?" Elena said, her brow furrowing.

"Lisa… Dean's…" Bobby cut off and Elena's hand gripped the phone a little tighter.

"Please finish that sentence, Bobby." She said calmly.

"I prefer not to. Oh look Rufus is callin' me on the FBI phone. I gotta go." Bobby said quickly.

"Your FBI phone doesn't have caller ID!" she claimed but it was too late and he already hung up.

She pulled the phone away from her ear and looked up at Sam.

"Tell me everything." She said simply.

* * *

"So, who's the guy?" Dean asked as they sat in the kitchen.

"What?" Lisa said, staring at him hesitantly.

"You're going on a date, right? Who's the guy?" he questioned.

"Dean…" Lisa sighed. "… I'm not getting into this with you. Especially not after how long it's been."

Dean shook his head, his eyes wide.

"I'm not asking because of that. I, uh… I just want to know if you're happy."

Lisa stared at him for a moment.

"I am happy. And his name is Matt. He's a doctor." She said.

Dean nodded, smiling.

"Good." He said.

Lisa tilted her head to the side slightly, pursing her lips.

"Who's the girl?" she asked.

His eyes widened slightly and he looked surprised.

"How'd you…" he began.

"It's all in the eyes." Lisa said simply.

"Her name is Elena." he said.

Lisa smiled and leaned forward slightly.

"How does that work with what you do?" she asked.

"Elena comes along. She's a better hunter than I am, to be honest. She's… she's good." Dean said.

"You love her." Lisa said, sounding pleased at the idea. "How long have you been together?"

"Two years." Dean said, almost shocked that it had been that long.

They were interrupted by soft footsteps walking into the room. Ben was staring at them with wide eyes.

"Hey kid, we have to talk." Lisa said, gesturing for him to walk in.

The young boy looked like he was about to have a panic attack because he knew he was caught.

* * *

"So, how long have you been here with the company?" Sam asked the factory worker, Jonny.

"I've been here about three years now." He answered, his voice trembling slightly. "I'm sorry, w-what's this got to do with me?"

Sam glanced up at him.

"Relax. Just a routine questioning." He said.

"Oh. Okay." Jonny sighed.

"Uh, did you know Rose Brown?" Sam questioned.

"Uh... maybe. Uh, the name sounds kind of familiar." He said nervously, his eyes shifting.

"She was a seamstress here. She went missing about a year ago." Sam reminded him and his face remained stressed. "Here. You mind taking a look?"

He pulled out a picture of Rose and slid it towards him on the table.

"Uh, yeah, I s… I saw her around." Jonny stammered.

"Anything you can tell me about her that might help?" Sam said.

"Uh, look, I'd love to help, but I don't know anything. And, uh, I'm about to be late back from break, so…" he glanced over his shoulder.

Sam stared at him for a moment.

"You seem nervous, Jonny."

"Well... those guys that died were my friends. O-of course I'm gonna be upset." He answered, shifting again.

"I didn't say upset. I said nervous." Sam corrected him.

There were a few moments as Jonny stared at him with wide, fearful eyes.

"Here." He pulled out a business card and handed it to the man who obviously knew something. "In case you remember anything."

* * *

"Why did you call Dean, Ben?" Lisa asked as they looked at him sitting in the chair looking ashamed.

He muttered something while looking at his hands.

"What was that?" she said.

"I don't like Matt." He mumbled.

Lisa looked at Dean as he smirked.

"Ben, sweetie, you can't just call Dean when you don't like a man I'm dating." She said, reaching out to mess with his hair.

"It's the third date. I've watched TV I know what that means. I didn't want it to get that serious and I remembered how much you liked Dean. I thought if he came you would remember and you two would be together instead." Ben said, looking at them with wide eyes.

"Sorry, kid. It doesn't work that way." Dean sighed.

"Ben, Dean has his own life and his own things to deal with. You have to remember that. He can't come running out here again. You know that he does important things." Lisa said.

"I know, I just… I wanted him to save us again because then I thought you might fall in love with him instead of Matt." Ben said, looking down again.

Lisa sighed and pulled him into a hug, murmuring into his ear. Dean sighed and rubbed his hand over his face, thankful that this was the situation he found at this house instead of the one that Ben lied to him about. This was a much better thing to deal with even though the kid wasn't getting what he wanted.

"I'm really sorry about that, Dean." Lisa said as she walked him to the door.

"Don't worry about it, Lis. I'm glad that everything is okay." He said.

She opened the door with a smile and leaned up to hug him, placing a kiss on his cheek.

"It was good to see you, Dean. I'm glad you're happy." She said.

"You too, Lisa." He said, moving backwards.

Lisa's eyes flickered past him and she looked confused for a moment. Dean looked back to see the Impala sitting in the street and a certain brunette leaning against it with her arms crossed and a displeased expression on her face.

"Dean, did she know you were coming to see me?" Lisa asked.

He looked back at her.

"She knew I was coming to see someone that I helpd out with a case." He said.

Lisa laughed and shook her head.

"You're in trouble." She informed him.

"Yeah tell me something I don't know." Dean muttered, turning to look at Elena.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked towards her slowly. Her hair was whipping around her face in the wind, making her fierce look more scary than before.

"She's pretty." Was all that she said when Dean approached.

"Elena…" he sighed.

She pushed herself off of the car and reached out. He stood still as she dug in his pocket and pulled the keys out. He didn't argue as she walked to the driver's seat and climbed in. He slid into the passenger's seat and remained silent as she drove. They didn't get a mile outside of town before she pulled over and slowly turned to stare at him.

"It's my ex." She said.

"Hmm?" Dean said with confusion.

"Three words. They're pretty easy to say. I'm not an unreasonable person. I would have understood. Hell I wouldn't have had any problem with it. But you…" she poked her finger into his chest. "… just had to lie to me."

Dean sighed.

"Technically I didn't…"

Elena growled out something unintelligible and threw the car door open, jumping out. Dean watched as she slammed it shut and walked around the car.

"What are you doing?" he asked, opening his door.

"Get out. I'm going to kick your ass." She said, glaring at him.

"You're not gonna…" he began, climbing out.

He was interrupted by her flying at him and attempting to hit him every spot imaginable on his body. As he deflected her hits, he processed the fact that she wasn't really trying to kick his ass. He'd seen her trying to kick someone's ass and this is not how she did it. She was just pissed at him and that was a good thing compared the fury he'd seen before.

"Elena! Elena stop!" he caught her wrists and she looked up at him.

"I wouldn't have been mad, Dean! I would have been just fine with you going to help your ex! So why didn't you tell me, asshole?" she snapped angrily.

"Because I wanted you to get mad. I wanted you to kick my ass." He said, stroking her wrists with his thumb.

She could have easily broken his grip and he counted it as a victory that she wasn't even trying.

"What?" Elena breathed, staring at him.

"You were being so different. I didn't like it and I didn't know how to stop it. I just… I wanted my Elena back. All I knew how to do was get you really pissed at me but I couldn't figure out how. Then Ben called." Dean said, staring deep into her eyes.

"Sam…" she murmured, knitting her eyebrows together.

"Do you really think that he wouldn't have said anything if he didn't know exactly what I was doing?" Dean said, smiling slightly.

"Bobby?"

"He was in on it too." Dean confirmed.

She stared at him for a moment.

"Let me get this straight… you wanted to make me mad… so you used your ex-girlfriend and her kid to do it?" Elena asked.

"Well I wanted to help them but making you jealous was just an added bonus. By the way, there was nothing wrong in the first place. Just a miscommunication." He said.

Elena stared at him, a supicious glint in her eyes. Suddenly he was thrown against the Impala and her lips were on his, passionately kissing him as her hands twisted into his hair.

"You jackass." She growled against them.

"I agree." He murmured back.

"I wasn't jealous." She said, pulling away to glare at him again.

"Sure you weren't." he said with a smirk.

"Shut up." She said, yanking him into a kiss again.

* * *

Sam crept through the factory, hearing Jonny talking on the phone.

"Why am I flipping out?! I-I don't know, maybe 'cause of the feds! Maybe 'cause Dave and Steve are freaking dead. Look… no. No. Just... call me later." His call ended and Sam saw him standing in the middle of the factory floor.

Suddenly a gash formed on his head for no reason and blood dripped his face. Sam felt the chill just as he breathed out and his breath was visible. He ran forward and grabbed Jonny, certain that Rose's ghost was there and about to attack him.

"Come on." he yanked him into the office and began spreading salt around.

"What's going on?" Jonny said, very confused.

"That was a ghost trying to kill you for being a dick." Sam snapped, putting the salt at the doors and on the windows.

"What?" he said.

"You know what? You're lucky you are the most suspicious interview of all time. I figured something like this would happen." Sam said.

"Figured something like what would happen?" Jonny asked, still stumped by Sam's words.

"Buddy, look, I don't have time for the big speech, all right? So, brass tacks… Rose is back." Sam said, annoyed by the man in front of him.

"That's crazy!" he exclaimed.

"Look, you're gonna end up like your friends unless you tell me what you did to Rose. Do you want me to help you or not?" Sam demanded.

Jonny stared at him for a moment.

"It was just a stupid joke. You know, I mean, you… you play jokes. We didn't think it was that big of a deal." He shrugged.

"What did you do?" Sam demanded.

"We made Rose think she had a secret admirer. I don't think the girl had ever been asked out in her life. Honestly, we just thought she was kind of pathetic...So we knew she'd take the bait. She was so excited. The poor girl never saw it coming." Jonny said. "It was mean. But you know how it is when a group of guys get together. They… they act like jackasses. It happened so fast... we didn't mean for it to happen. And then it was too late. Steve said there was only one option. I wish I could take it all back."

"I'm sure you do." Sam scoffed, shaking his head.

"I didn't kill her." Jonny argued.

"Okay. Look me in the eyes and tell me none of it's on you." Sam said, staring deep into his eyes.

Jonny didn't say anything but the guilty look on his face was enough.

"Look, I'm not saying you deserve to die." Sam sighed. "I can help you."

"How?" Jonny asked.

"You have to tell me where she's buried." He said.

"In the woods, a clearing off Canyon Run Road." The man turned to lead him out of the door.

"No, no, no, no. You're not going anywhere." Sam said, catching his arm.

"But I…" Jonny began to argue.

"You need to stay inside the salt line until I tell you you're safe." Sam said.

"You just want me to stand here all night?!" Jonny demanded, staring at him with disbelief.

"Consider it getting off easy." Sam replied.

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Elena to pop them back to the motel, Impala and all. Luckily no one had been in the parking lot to see such a thing. They didn't waste any time before crashing through the door still connected at the lips.

"I'm sorry… I've been… a bitch." Elena breathed out as he shoved her against the wall and began kissing down her neck.

"Don't… worry… about… it." Dean murmured, pushing her jacket off of her shoulders.

Elena kicked her heels off and before she could lower her leg to the ground, Dean lifted her easily and she wrapped her legs around his waist. His jacket and shirts were off before anything else happened. They stumbled backwards toward the bed but didn't quite make it that far. Dean fell back on his back and didn't even care when his head hit the ground of the kitchenette.

"Oh are you okay?" Elena said, her eyes wide with concern as they wrapped around the back of his head protectively.

"I'm fine. Keep kissin' me." Dean growled, yanking her back down so that their mouths melded together hungrily once again.

They separated only for Dean to pull her shirt over her head.

"Bed?" he mumbled as she pushed him down and began slowly placing open mouthed kisses on his neck.

"Too far." She replied softly, her hands sliding up his arms as she kissed down to his chest.

Her mouth explored every inch of his skin as he laid there with his hands roaming the soft skin of her back. When her tongue experimentally flicked out over one of his nipples, he stared down at her with surprise. A wry grin formed on her face and he grinned back, partly because he was finding the situation very pleasing but also because he felt like he had his Elena back for the first time in a long time. Neither of them reacted as the doorknob rattled. Elena continued on her path carelessly, knowing that Sam would take one look at them and turn to walk out.

"Oh God!"

Dean lifted his hand and threw the Impala keys at Sam that he were buried deep in his jeans pocket. The younger Winchester caught them and turned to leave with a traumatized expression.

"Don't hurt my baby!" Dean yelled after him before door slammed shut.

"Just for future reference." Elena said, glancing up at him where her lips were tracing his navel. "When you're about to have sex with your girlfriend, don't refer to the other woman in your life."

Dean grinned.

"Oh you don't have to worry about my baby. I might even love you more than her." he said jokingly.

Elena smirked and he quieted when her hand deftly unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans. When she yanked them off, he obliged willing, lifting his hips for her to do so. Elena climbed back up his body and straddled him, rolling her hips experimentally and making him moan as his eyes fluttered.

"Dean?" she said softly.

"Hmm?" he mumbled.

She yanked him up to her easily, looking deep into his eyes as her legs wrapped around his waist and locked them in place. She leaned in close to his ear, her lips touching his earlobe.

"Take me. Now." She whispered, her teeth nibbling at his ear.

* * *

Sam sighed, glancing around the new crime scene that he'd been called to. He thought that he finished it when he burned Rose's bones. Apparently it was not done because Jonny was lying on the floor in front of him dead.

"This is Dean's other other cell, so you must know what to do." He heard Dean's voicemail.

He knew that his brother wouldn't be picking up any time soon but he could still hope.

"Hey, it's not over. Burning the remains didn't stop her. She's got to be hooked to something else. I'm gonna head to the sister's now. Call me."

* * *

Dean finally convinced Elena to move to the bed. Of course he hadn't counted on her pinning him down again. At the moment, her mouth was sliding over one of his hips, causing his entire body to tremble with need as her hand softly and teasing stroked up and down his length.

"Elena you gotta give me more." He said desperately, his voice tight with desire.

His head was thrown back and his fists were clenching into the blankets. When he felt her tongue hesitantly flick over the tip of his manhood, he groaned and his eyes popped open.

"Fuck." He murmured as her mouth slid over him, taking him in very slowly.

Elena moved almost torturously slow, sliding up and back down several times at a snail's pace, driving him absolutely insane.

"More than that." he pleaded.

His hands threaded in his hair but he didn't dare to guide her movements. He simply wanted to feel her silky locks on his skin. Suddenly she released him and slid up his body, resting on him with her legs straddling him. They were both fully naked now and Dean took the chance to gaze at her. She was a sight to see, her hair spilling over her shoulders in luxurious curls and her chest heaving slightly. Her bronze skin was covered in a slight sheen of sweat already and her lips were swollen and red from the kissing they'd already done. He watched as she lifted herself, effortlessly positioning his tip at her entrance. They both moaned loudly as she slid down on him, surrounding him completely with her warmth.

She slowly moved down until her chest was lying against his and her lips were pressed to his.

"I said… take me." she whispered again.

* * *

Sam sighed frustratedly as he went through a box of Rose's things.

"So, um, this is it?" he asked, looking up at the woman.

"I gave most of her clothes to the Goodwill. She didn't have much." Isabel said, sounding suspicious of his behavior.

Sam glanced around and noticed a stack of books on the table.

"Those yours?"

"Yeah." She nodded.

"Are you in school?" he asked.

"Mm-hmm, yeah."

"Where?" Sam said.

"Uh, Great Falls." Isabel answered.

"So let me guess... um, you were at the chem lab and the factory this week." Sam said, slowly figuring everything out.

"Well, yeah." She nodded.

"Did you happen to stop by a bar called McOwen's last night?" he asked, referring to the bar that Jonny went to the previous night after Sam let him go.

"Everybody from the factory goes there. I stop in maybe three times a week. Why?" Isabel questioned.

"That's it. So this is all about you." Sam said, his eyes widening.

"What? What is?" she asked, getting scared.

"The murders… your coworkers, your college janitor."

"What, you… you think I could do something like that?!" Isabel demanded, shaking her head fearfully.

"No, no, no, no, no. But… but I think you're at the center." He said.

"Me? How?" she said, confused.

"What are you wearing of Rose's? A ring? A bracelet? Her baby teeth in a locket? What?" he asked desperately.

"You're scaring me." she whimpered.

"Just think, please. What… what do you have of Rose that you carry with you?" he said.

"I-I'm..." she stammered.

Realization dawned on her face.

"What?" Sam said, recognizing it.

"Well, the only thing I have of hers is a part of me. When I was sixteen, she gave me one of her kidneys."

"Her kidney?" he said.

"Yeah." She nodded.

"You're kidding."

"Will you please tell me what this is about?" Isabel pleaded.

"Yeah. Um... but I'm gonna need you to come with me."

* * *

Dean and Elena were both in high spirits as they lounged on the bed. Her hand was trailing over his chest lazily leaving a trail of tingles in its path.

"I can't believe you tried to make me jealous with your ex." She said.

"I can't believe I succeeded. But Lisa was funny. She knew I was in trouble the moment she saw you, even warned me about it and everything. She is really nice. I'm sure you wouldn't have hated her." he said.

"I'm sure I wouldn't have. You have a great taste in girls." Elena said, grinning. "Also, I've noticed you seem to have a thing for brunettes."

Dean thought about it for a moment.

"I suppose I do." He said, shrugging.

"Hey, I better be the only brunette." She threatened.

"Just you and Samantha." Dean assured her, making her laugh at his feminine nickname for his brother.

His phone suddenly began ringing once again as it had been for a while. They'd both been ignoring it on purpose but now they didn't really have any excuse.

"What's up?" Dean said when he answered it, knowing that it was Sam.

"What? Okay… yeah we'll meet you."

* * *

"So, that the girl with the haunted kidney?" Dean asked, looking past Sam into the other car where Isabel was sitting.

They both assumed that the vehicle belonged to the female. Elena waved at Isabel with a soft smile.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"Well, just when you think you seen it all." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Right." Sam nodded, sounding as disbelieving as Dean.

"What do you want to do? Can't exactly burn the thing." Dean said.

"Yeah, she kind of needs it." Elena scoffed, sounding back to her normal self which was surprising to Sam who wasn't caught up yet.

"Well, she can't just walk around with it, Dean. The spirit's attached. It's gonna use her to get close to anyone it wants revenge on. It's not gonna stop killing." Sam said.

"Okay, so what are you suggesting, that we cut it out of her?" Dean replied.

"And then what? Leave her in a tub of ice with a phone taped to her hand?"

Elena sighed. They were both frustrated with this one because they had no idea what to do.

"Maybe we should call Dr. Robert. Might have some leads on some non-haunted, black-market replacement kidneys." Dean suggested.

"He works out of a butcher shop." Sam argued.

"It's pretty clean. You'd be surprised." Dean said.

"No. I think we have to go hoodoo." The younger brother said.

"Hoodoo?" Elena asked, not liking the sound of that.

Magic seemed a bit too much.

"Yeah, hoodoo." He nodded.

"That's more of a band-aid, not really a cure." Dean said.

"It buys us a minute." Sam shrugged.

"All right, Louisiana it is." Dean sighed.

"Voodoo?!" They all turned to see Isabel standing there with wide eyes. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Actually, it's hoodoo. It's a little different." Dean corrected her.

"Hold on, Isabel." Sam said, holding his hands up.

"You're not feds." She said, backign away.

"Just let us explain." Elena said soothingly, stepping forward.

They all heard an engine rev and turned to see the Impala's turned on. Dean was holding the keys in his hand.

"No. No way." Dean said his eyes wide as it revved again.

"That's impossible." Isabel breathed.

"No, no, no, no, no, no. She possesses sex dolls! This… this is not a sex doll!" Dean shouted. "Hey, you leave my baby alone! She's got nothing to do with this!"

As if to answer him, the Impala began driving forward.

"Go, go, go, go, go!" Dean shouted, rushing away.

"Okay, here, here, here." Sam ushered Isabel over to her car. "Get in."

"Son of a bitch!" Dean yelled as the Impala chased him all over the parking lot.

Elena squeezed her eyes shut, zapping into the driver's seat. She stomped on the break and the gas pedal, swerving the wheel and everything, attempting to stop it. Dean ran towards the storefront and she knew his plan instantly. She also saw Isabel running towards the car, her intent clear in her eyes.

"Stop stop stop! You're going to kill your sister if you don't stop!" Elena yelled, hitting the steering wheel.

Suddenly the car screeched to a stop and Elena lurched forward, narrowly missing out on hitting her head. She looked around with wide eyes.

"Is that it?" she wondered, hesitant to believe that it was over.

Dean ran to the car and opened it so that she could get out. Isabel was standing there with Sam.

"What happened?" the other woman asked as Elena climbed out.

They all looked around to see Rose's spirit appear by the car. She was staring at Isabel.

"I'm so sorry." She murmured.

They all watched with surprise as she went up flames like a ghost usually would when they were burned up.

"Well I wasn't expecting that." Dean commented.

* * *

They were all gathered in the living room, Bobby, Dean and Sam looking at her attentively.

"There's something I have to tell you. I've been wondering how to come to you with this. I had no idea." She said.

"What is it?" Dean asked.

"It's something I saw when I had the Mother affecting me." she said.

"What did you see?" Sam asked.

She stared at him with a slightly apologetic expression.

"I saw God. And he was way too familiar."

* * *

**Author's Note: I hate to leave it off there but I have to go to bed. But you know what the next episode is. That's right. French Mistake shenanigans! Review please!**


	20. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks so much to CherrySin, Nyssandria, Thenchick, RHatch89, TheElegantFaerie, Dark Supernatural Angel, chiwi, RippahGoneWolf, SwanQueen4055, Dean Winchester Rocks, and DrawingMyHeartOut for reviewing and to all of my readers!**

**To those who are worried about me having Elena tell the other three about God/Chuck, there's no reason to worry. His presence is not a big plotline really until the end of the series. He's pretty much going to be around as much as he is in the real canon Supernatural series with a few exceptions. And I really didn't want to write Elena keeping secrets from Dean and Sam. That is not how I want to write this story and I already wrote several situations where she tried to do that and it bit her in the ass. I'm keeping up the character development and having her keep anything that big from them would be backtracking and I refuse to do that. And also, I haven't even come close to revealing God's plans for Elena. They are not what you think and they will not be revealed for a while.**

**Also to those who think that she's being hard on Gabriel, that is not how I wanted to portray it. I know it's easy to find fault in Elena because this story is written more from her perspective. But he did sort of betray her by allowing Michael to take control of her mind and he did know about God/Chuck the entire time. It won't last forever. In fact, some of their conflict is settled very soon. But she has every right to be angry with him.**

**Sorry about those rants. I just don't want any of you to think that I write things just because I think they'll make for good drama. I write very deliberately and most of the time I know what will happen next. I know the basic outline of this series and I even have a plan for how it will end. So please just trust me that I will continue to write to the best of my ability and that I will try not to let this series go bad.**

**A few things:**

**1. Okay so this was a really stressful chapter to write. There was so much pressure to make it great! I'm sorry if it doesn't really stand up to the real episode. I did really try!**

**2. For the purposes of this chapter, let's all pretend like everything I saw about the other world (with J2 and Nina) is true even if it's not. I had to bend some things to make it all fit. I know it's not all true but the real episode changed some things too.**

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

Elena didn't say anything, watching as they all took it in.

"Are you sure?" Dean said, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

"I was hesitant to believe it at first. After all, it was a monster from purgatory who told me but… I asked Gabriel and Michael if it was true. They confirmed it." she said.

"Chuck was God… the entire time?" Sam said.

"I don't know if he was God the entire time but he certainly was for a while." Elena sighed, leaning back and rubbing her head.

A crash of thunder sounded outside and made them all jump a little.

"Does Cas know?" Dean asked.

She shook her head.

"And Gabriel really really doesn't want me to tell him." she said.

"Well… should we tell him?" Bobby asked.

"He's our friend. It's his father we're talking about. How can we not?" Elena questioned.

They all frowned and sighed.

"Now you understand the conflict I've been having in my head. Hell I've been fighting with myself about whether I should even tell you three." She said.

"Why wouldn't you tell us?" Dean asked, furrowing his brow with a hint of anger in his voice at the suggestion.

"Because of your history of running into situations you don't understand with guns blazing, Dean. You can't exactly do that with God though I know you'd try." Elena said.

"You're damn right I'd try if knew where the bastard was. He was there the whole time and he didn't do a damn thing to help us." Dean snapped, standing up and pacing.

"I'm not defending him, I mean, there is really almost nothing to defend but he was there. He wasn't off vacationing in Tahiti. I mean, he was still in the middle of the fight." She said.

"No he was hiding behind his archangel. He didn't lift a damn finger to do anything unless we begged him to." Dean growled, shaking his head.

She sighed and stood, turning him to face her.

"I know, trust me I've had every one of those thoughts and more going through my head but dwelling on it now won't help. I didn't tell you so that we could take out our revenge on him. I told you because I didn't want to deceive you by keeping it to myself." She said, putting her hands on his cheeks.

Dean brought his hands up and put them on her wrists.

"I know you're disappointed and you don't know if you can take anymore disappointment." She murmured softly.

He sighed and closed his eyes.

"It'll be okay. Cause we still have each other. We have Sam and Bobby and Cas. We have everyone in Mystic Falls and they all showed that they were on our side." She assured him.

"I just can't help but wonder if it's not as over as we thought it was. I mean, we thought we were done and then this Mother thing came out of Purgatory." He said, opening his eyes and staring deep into hers.

"And we'll deal with that just like we deal with everything else. C'mon Dean, we stopped the apocalypse against all odds. I'm pretty sure we can defeat this bitch." She said.

Dean leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips.

"I know." He sighed.

"It'll be okay. We'll get through this."

* * *

Sam excused himself to take a shower as Elena and Dean sat on the couch, Elena curled into his side.

"I know we've had a lot on our plates for the past few days but I found some old research that I did for you, Elena." Bobby said, pulling out a thick folder.

"What is it?" she asked, not able to remember what he was talking about.

"Every single thing I ever learned about soulmates." He said.

Elena's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open a little.

"I completely forgot that I asked you to do this, Bobby." She breathed, moving forward to grab the folder out of his hands.

"It's a lot. But it's everything." He shrugged.

She smiled up at him as she sat next to Dean again, who was simply watching the exchange.

"Thank you." Elena said, her gratefulness clear in her voice.

"It wasn't much work." He shrugged off, looking away.

But when he glanced back at her, the corners of his mouth lifted as she opened the folder with a look of exhilaration and pleasure as if the information was sacred to her.

"Why did you want this?" Dean asked, curious.

"I just wanted to know all about what it meant. I mean, it was never really fully explained to either of us." She said softly, seeing that there was mythology and much more in the folder.

She couldn't wait to read it all.

* * *

Sam walked back in, confused to see that Bobby and Elena were gone where Dean was at the desk reading through a thick file of papers. It was surprising enough to see him doing any kind of research and Sam couldn't help but wonder what it was.

"Where are Bobby and Elena?"

"In town, supply run." Dean answered, glancing up at him.

They'd decided to go get food and alcohol since the news said that the weather wasn't going to let up for a while.

"In this?" Sam said, glancing out of the window.

"Yeah, they're heroes. We were officially out of hunter's helper." Dean said, picking up an empty whiskey bottle to show Sam, who shook his head.

Another clap of thunder filled the air, drowning out the sound of angel's wings filling the room.

"Hello, boys." They both looked with surprise to see Balthazar standing in the study.

"You've seen the Godfather, right?"

They watched as he walked to the desk and pulled out one of Bobby's spell bowls.

"Balthazar..." Dean said.

"You know, the end, where Michael Corleone sends his men to kill his enemies in one big, bloody swoop?" he dug through a drawer and pulled out a container of salt, pouring it into the bowl.

"Hey!" Dean snapped as he stood, trying to get the angel's attention.

"Dead sea brine. Good, good, good." He muttered, pulling it off of a shelf.

Dean looked at Sam, who shrugged.

"You know, Moe Greene gets it in the eye, and Don Cuneo gets it in the revolving door?" Balthazar continued talking about the movie.

"I said hey." Dean growled.

Balthazar finally looked at him and smirked.

"You did. Twice. Good for you." he said tauntingly before looking around. "Blood of lamb. Blood of lamb."

He disappeared and they heard the fridge door open. Dean and Sam both turned to see him digging through it.

"Beer, cold pizza. Blood of lamb. Yes! Blood of lamb!" he held the container with red liquid up triumphantly.

Then he disappeared and reappeared by the desk, pouring the blood into the bowl as well.

"Why are you talking about the Godfather?" Sam asked.

"Because we're in it… right now, tonight." The angel said, looking up at them. "And in the role of Michael Corleone… the archangel Raphael."

Dean furrowed his brow in confusion.

"You mind telling us what you mean?" he asked.

"No, no, no, no. No, no, no, no." Balthazar ranted, digging through the drawers and emptying them.

Finally he pulled a false bottom out of one fo them and grinned.

"Yes. Bone of a lesser saint." He held up the small plastic bag with a bon in it. "This vertebra will do very nicely. Your Mr. Singer does keep a beautiful pantry."

"Wait, Raphael is after you?" Dean questioned.

"Raphael is after us all." Balthazar corrected him as he ground the bone up in his hand and poured it into the bowl. "You see, he's consolidated his strength. And now he's on the move."

"And where's Cas?" Sam asked as Balthazar walked to the window while he stirred the contents of the bowl.

"Oh, Cassie? He is deep, deep underground." He said, dipping his fingers into the blood as he coughed a few times.

"So, good old Raffy put out a hit list on every last samaritan who helped our dear Cas… including both of you and your dearest guardian. And so much more importantly, me. Speaking of, where is Elena?" Balthazar said as he drew a sigil on the window.

"Out." Dean said simply.

"Oh this is not the time for her to be out and about. See, he wants to draw Cas out in the open." Balthazar explained, walking around the couch and up to Dean and Sam.

"And you expect us to just believe you?" Dean asked, glaring down at him.

"Oh, don't. You'll go where I throw you either way." the angel shrugged.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

Lightning flashed and Balthazar looked around.

"That's all the time we have, gentlemen." He opened his jacket as he searched the pockets, revealing a large bloodstain on his grey shirt. "Where is it?"

"Whoa. What happened there?" Dean asked, staring at the wound.

Balthazar looked down as if he'd just noticed it.

"Oh. Garish, I know. You see, uncle Raffy sent one of his nastiest to handle me. I'm flattered, actually." The angel said, looking up at them. "And down a lung at the moment, but that's all right."

He finally found something in his jacket and held out a key ring with one key on it to Sam.

"Here's for you."

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Sam asked, holding it with a confused look.

"Run with it." Balthazar said simply.

Suddenly he was thrown across the room much to the hunters surprise. A few moments later, another angel appeared and walked into the room.

"Virgil." Balthazar sighed as he stood up.

Then he looked at Sam and Dean, noticing that they were still there.

"I said, run!"

His hand flew out and he shoved them backwards through the window.

* * *

"This place is surprisingly empty." Bobby mumbled as they walked through the grocery store.

"Have you looked outside?" Elena said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I know the people in this town. They ain't never gonna let a small storm keep 'em from their food and their beer." He said.

She laughed and shook her head, pulling a bag of chips off of the shelf and throwing it into the basket.

"Did we really have to get three pies?" he asked.

"Do you really think they won't be gone in three hours?" she replied.

He shrugged, unable to argue with that. Suddenly Elena stopped short and her eyes widened.

"Something is wrong." She said.

"What…?"

She turned and he saw the panic on her face. He didn't have much time before she reached out and grabbed his arm, disappearing from the spot. When they appeared in his house, a body flew past them. They both looked with panic to see a battered Balthazar slump to the floor. Elena ran towards him but saw someone out of the corner of her eye. She stood protectively as the man advanced on them, barely a scratch on his cheek.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

"The angel sent to kill you." he replied.

Elena ducked his punch and threw him backwards with her mind, kneeling next to Balthazar for a moment.

"Your blade?" she asked.

"Jacket." He wheezed.

She dug through it as the angel stood and began rushing towards them again. Her hand gripped the silver sword just as he reached down to grab her. She swung it out and it sliced across his hand, causing him to withdraw it. Then she stood and stabbed it through his shoulder as he stumbled away from her. He yanked it out and threw it to the ground, glaring at her.

"I'll be back." he threatened before disappearing.

Elena looked back at Balthazar, who was pushing himself up to a standing position.

"Who the hell was that? And where are Sam and Dean?" she demanded.

"Virgil. And they're not in this world right now." He said, clutching his bleeding side.

"What do you mean, not in this world? Did you send them to heaven?" she yelled.

"Nope, just… another universe." He said, looking at her. "Wish I could explain but I have no time. Thanks for the help."

Elena opened her mouth to argue but he disappeared. She looked at Bobby to see him looking just as confused as she was.

"What do we do now?" she said.

"I wish I knew." He said.

* * *

Sam and Dean shouted as they flew through the window. Their confusion and panic rose when they landed on a mat instead of the hard ground.

"Cut!" They scrambled to their hands and knees, looking around with panic at the crowd of people surrounding them.

Cameras and monitors were all over the place and the buzzing of several conversations filled their ears.

"Real good solid fall." A man patted Dean's ass, shocking him even more. "Way to go."

"Jared, Jensen! Outstanding! That was just great." A squat man yelled from a chair behind several television monitors.

They stared at him with big eyes, wondering what the hell a Jared and Jensen were.

""Supernatural, scene one echo, take one." They turned to see a man with a clapperboard talking a camera that was in Bobby's study.

"Tail slate. Marker!"

* * *

Elena paced the room as Bobby picked up all of the fallen books and other artifacts.

"Whatever happened, someone did a spell." He said, holding up a bowl with the remains of a spell in them.

"It must have been what sent Dean and Sam off." she said, her hand at her lips.

"So… we wait until they come back?" Bobby said.

"We can't just do that. If they're in another universe they might be unprotected. I need to protect them, Bobby." She said desperately, pulling at her hair.

"Then we get another angel. If that's what sent them through, maybe they can send you through too."

She looked at him with a grimace.

"I can't. Cas is busy with a war and I am certainly not calling…"

"You know, sometimes I don't understand you three with your pride. Gabriel has been there for you how many times? Do you really think he wouldn't come right over here if you called? Do you really think he wouldn't do whatever you asked of him. I mean, damn, that angel practically thinks of himself as your ultimate protector. Believe it or not, with all that's going on, he will do anything for you." he said.

Elena sighed, bending her head back.

"Fine." She grumbled.

* * *

"So... no angels?" Sam said, looking around with wide eyes.

"No angels, I think." Dean said, panicked at all that was going on as they stood and looked around at what looked like a set for either a movie or a television show.

"Should we be killing anybody?" Sam questioned.

"I don't think so."

They looked to see the group of people around the monitors as they spoke to them.

"Running?" the younger brother wondered.

"Where?" Dean asked.

It was a good question. If they had no idea where they were, where would they go? Sam glanced around before looking down. He picked up a piece of the 'glass' that they'd been thrown through and found that it was made of some sort of gel. He wobbled it back and forth in front of Dean's face to show the fact that it wasn't real.

"Ha! Right. You answer the hate mail!" they both looked at the squat man who was talking to two other men.

"Or we could have them fly at the window, then freeze frame. Then cut to black, act out." another man suggested.

"Freeze frame." The first, loud man said.

"Um... yeah. Freeze frame." The second man nodded.

They both looked at a third man who sighed.

"Serviceable."

"Fine. Whatever. Season six." The squat man sighed. "Moving on!"

"Moving on! That's a wrap on Jared and Jensen! Keep Nina around for her fight scene!" the second man yelled turning around.

Activity broke around them as everyone rushed off to do something.

"W-who the hell are…" Jared began as they walked off of the mat and towards the direction that everyone else was going.

"Jared!" A woman ran forward and grabbed his arm, pulling him with her. "Three minutes, okay? Great."

Dean followed, confusion on his face.

"Where are we going?" he hissed.

"Jensen, there you are!" Another woman grabbed Dean's arm and pulled him in the opposite direction to a chair sitting in front of two mirrors "Let's just get you in the chair."

"Chair?" he said, sitting down with wide eyes.

"Okay, hon, we're just gonna get this makeup off your face."

She said, pulling out a cloth and approaching his cheek with it.

"Wha… I'm not wearing any ma…" he pulled the white, wet cloth away from his face and saw that it was stained with a beige color.

He turned to look in the mirror, shocked.

"Oh, crap! I'm a painted whore!" he said with a traumatized voice.

"Evian here with Jared Padalecki from TV's Supernatural."

Sam looked around with confusion as he sat in a chair with the name 'Jared Padalecki' written on it.

"So, Jared, season six."

He looked at her with his eyebrows knitted together.

"What?" he said.

"You beat the devil, lost your soul, and got it back again. So tell us, what's next for Sam Winchester?"

His eyes widened more and more as she described the past two years of his life. How could she possibly know about all fo that.

"Look, I-I-I really don't…" he stammered.

"Oh, and if you could include the question in your answer? Thanks." She said with a grin.

He let out a nervous laugh, unsure of what the hell to say.

* * *

"Did I hear my name?"

Elena whirled around from where she was standing to see Gabriel leaning against the wall. She sighed.

"I need your help." She said.

He stared at her.

"I'm not going to lie, I'm surprised. I never thought you'd ask for help again." He said.

"Yeah well, I'm desperate." She admitted.

"Where are your boy toys?" he asked, walking forward.

"That's the problem. Balthazar sent them to an alternate universe for some reason. I don't know why." She said.

"That's… strange." Gabriel said.

"Yeah, I know. I need you to send me there, if you can." She said.

He smirked and she saw a hint of the Gabriel that she knew and loved behind his trickster-like exterior.

"Of course I can. The question is, will I? What do I get out of it?" he asked.

She sighed, putting her hand on her forehead.

"I don't have time for this, Gabriel. Will you please send me?" she pleaded.

He looked at her, considering her plea.

"On one condition." He said, holding up a finger.

"Gabriel…" she sighed.

"Sit down with me and let me talk. Let me explain." She stared at him warily.

"Fine." She said.

She was all right saying yes because after Bobby's speech, she was planning on doing exactly that.

"I'll be back." he said.

"Where are you going?" she asked, catching his arm.

"Balthazar used up all of Bobby's supplies for the spell. I have to go get more." He said. "I'll be right back." he assured her.

She pulled away and, when he disappeared, she turned to Bobby.

"I'm guess I'll wait here."

* * *

"Hey." Sam caught up with Dean as the other brother wandered around.

"Dude, they put freakin' makeup on us! Those bastards!"

"Look, I think I know what this is." Sam said, stopping him and turning Dean to face him.

"Okay. What?" Dean asked, frustrated.

"It's a TV show." Sam said.

"You think?" Dean said with a roll of his eyes.

"Yeah. I mean, here… wherever here is, this… this twilight zone Balthazar zapped us into. For whatever reason, our life is a TV show."

"Why?" Dean asked.

"I don't know." Sam sighed.

"No, seriously. Why? Why would anybody want to watch our lives?" he said.

"Well, I mean, according to that interviewer, not very many people do. Look, I'm not saying it makes sense. I'm just saying, we… we landed in some dimension where you're Jensen Ackles, and I'm something called a Jared Padalecki." Sam said as they walked towards the exit.

"So what, now you're polish? Is any of this making any sense to you?" Dean snapped as they exited the studio and walked onto the backlot.

Dean caught sight of something and grinned.

"Oh, hey. Least my baby made it." he said, walking forward with a relieved feeling.

Then he saw a crewmember flinging mud onto the windshield.

"Hey. Hey!" he yelled, starting forward to stop the guy.

"What…" that was when he caught sight of three other Impalas lined up all different sorts of destroyed. "I feel sick. I'm gonna be sick. I want to go home. I feel like this whole place is bad touching me."

Dean clutched at his stomach.

"Yeah, I know. Me too. So, what do you think? I mean I doubt Elena can get here without angelic help. Cas?" Sam said.

"He's our best shot, if he's still alive." Dean said as they walked towards a shadowed place of the lot.

"Dear Castiel, who art maybe running his ass away from heaven, we pray that you have your ears on. So... breaker breaker..." Dean prayed as Sam stared at him.

He turned his head and spotted Castiel standing a short distance away staring at them.

"Cas?" Dean squinted at him. "Cas! Hey, Cas!"

He and Sam ran up to him when they saw that it was really him.

"Oh, thank god. What is all this, huh? W-w-what did Balthazar do to us?" he demanded.

The angel stared at him with squinting eyes for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"To keep you out of virgil's reach, he's cast you into an alternate reality, a universe similar to ours in most respects yet dramatically different in others." He explained.

"Like… like bizarro earth, right? Except instead of having Bizarro superman, we get this clown factory." Dean said, gesturing around.

He stared at Dean, hesitating.

"Um... yeah, well... anyway, no time to explain. Do you have the key?" he asked, looking at Sam.

"Yeah." He dug in his pocket and handed it to Cas. "So, uh, what does this thing do, anyway?"

"It opens a room." Cas said simply.

"What's in the room?" Dean asked.

"Every weapon Balthazar stole from heaven." He answered.

"He gave it to us?" the older brother said with doubt, knowing how much Balthazar hated them and wouldn't ever give them something so valuable.

"To keep it safe until I could reach you. With those weapons, I have a chance to rally my forces." He said.

"Oh. Okay, good." Sam said, nodding with relief that they helped out. "Yeah. So, now, uh, what's the deal with all this TV crap?"

"Pardon?" he said.

"Yeah. Amen, Padaleski." Dean scoffed.

"Uh, -lecki." Sam corrected him.

"What?" Dean frowned at his brother.

"Lecki. Pretty sure." Sam said.

"Man." they both looked at Cas with surprise at the whiny sound that came out of his mouth. "Did they put out new pages?"

"New what?" Dean said, his brow furrowing even more if that were possible.

"I mean, is this some kind of cosmic joke?" Sam said.

"Yeah, 'cause if it is, it's stupid, and we don't get it." Dean snapped.

"Yeah." Sam sighed.

Cas looked up at them, smiling slightly which threw them off completely. Cas almost never smiled, especially not with a teasing look in his eyes.

"Are you guys okay?" he asked.

Dean stared at him before grabbing the papers from his hand.

"Give me that." he flipped through it and saw their conversation written on the paper. "What is… these are words in a script. This isn't Cas."

Sam scoffed, watching as the man unbuttoned his shirt to reveal a patterned shirt t-shirt underneath.

"Dude, look at him." he said.

"You guys want to run lines, or...?" he said, trailing off with confusion at their strange behavior.

"His name's Misha. Misha?" Dean said, raising an eyebrow at his name.

The actor sighed as if he was used to his name being made fun of.

"Oh, wow. Just... Great." Dean said. "Misha? Jensen? What's up with the names around here?"

He threw the papers at the fake-Cas before walking off with Sam.

"You guys!" he heard Misha yell. "You really punked me! I'm totally gonna tweet this one!"

Dean glanced back at him to see him typing on his phone.

""Hola, mishamigos. J-squared... got me good. Really...Starting to feel... Like one of the guys."

"I just want to dig my finger in my brain and scratch until we're back in Kansas." Dean said as they walked between large trailers.

Sam glanced up and stopped.

"Hey. J. Ackles." He said, pointing at a sign on one of the trailers.

"That's fake me!" Dean said, looking up at it.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"This must be fake mine."

Sam followed him into the trailer and they looked around at it.

"Dude, I have a helicopter!" Dean said, looking at the large remote control helicopter on the table to the left as soon as they walked in.

"Oh. All right, who puts a 300-gallon aquarium in their trailer?" Sam asked, looking at the fish swimming around.

"Apparently, Jensen Ackles." Dean said, finding himself already unimpressed with his actor counterpart.

"Huh." Sam shrugged, spotting a laptop. "All right, here we go. Let's see who this guy is."

* * *

Elena sighed as she watched Gabriel paint the sigil on another window.

"You're sure this will work?" she asked nervously.

"I promise it will." He said over his shoulder.

She sighed as he withdrew.

"I'm sorry I just… I don't like the idea of hopping over to another universe without having a single clue about what I'm going to be facing." She said, tugging on the ends of her hair.

"It'll be fine. Though, this isn't going to feel great." The archangel said, moving her to stand in front of the window.

"I've had worse." She said, readying herself.

"That's my girl." Gabriel said, grinning at her.

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead, making her feel like they were back to normal just for a moment. Then he stepped away and put his hand out.

"You're gonna have to figure out a way back. You remember the spell?" he said.

She nodded.

"Good luck." He said.

Elena glanced at Bobby and tried to smile confidently but she was pretty sure it was a grimace. It didn't matter, though, as she was flying through the air and into the window in the next moment. She closed her eyes, bracing for impact. Instead of glass shattering around her, she felt like she was shoved through a door that splintered around her. When her back hit a wall, her eyes flew open. The next thing, she saw a fist flying at her face. She ducked it and shoved herself out of the way of the body.

"What the…" she was cut off when the man shoved her into the wall.

One look at his eyes showed her that he was a demon.

"Son of a…"

She struggled against him but found that it was much harder than it should have been to shove him off of her.

"Not so impressive without your weapons, are you?" he asked in a snarl as he kept her pinned against the wall of the bathroom they were standing in.

Elena looked down to see that she was in a completely different outfit and her dagger was missing from its usual place on her belt. She saw something out of the corner of her eye but didn't have the chance to look at what it was.

"I will kill you, asshole." She snapped, glaring at him.

"Big talk for a little girl." he stroked her cheek and she reared back to punch him with her one free hand.

He caught it and lifted it, slamming it against the rod of the shower curtain. She cried out as he slapped handcuffs on her wrist and put the other end on the rod.

"Now…" he pulled away and drew out a knife. "Let's make you squeal."

Her eyes widened as she struggled with the handcuffs and he grinned sadistically at her. Her heart was pounding in her chest as he stood there. She stared at him with a fearful look, wondering why he wasn't doing anything.

"Cut!" the loud voice made her jump out of her skin and the man dropped the look, twirling the knife in his hands as he faced away from her. "That's a wrap on Nina and Harry!"

That was when she saw the cameras pointing at them at the other end of the bathroom where the sink and mirror should have been.

"What the hell?" she said, shocked at what she saw.

"That was a great one, Nina." A man said, rushing through the broken down door with a key in his hand.

She watched as he reached up and unlocked the handcuffs, freeing her.

"I guess it's a good thing we didn't lose the key this time, huh?" he said with a grin.

"Uh… what?" she said, lost on what was going on.

She walked forward rubbing her wrist and looked around as she tried to figure out what was going on. She looked on as she saw an assistant-type person pulling two black contacts out of her attacker's eyes, leaving him back to normal. He glanced at her and smiled.

"Sorry, Nina. Did I hit your wrist too hard?" he asked, walking to her.

Elena stared at the knife that was still in his hand before she looked at him.

"No… I'm fine." She said.

"Prop knife please, Harry." Another assistant walked up and took it from him.

"See you tomorrow." The man, Harry, said before walking off.

"Nina, sweetie." Someone grabbed her arm and dragged her to a chair. "Let's get that jacket off and take off the tattoo. I know how the ink irritates your skin if we leave it on for too long."

Elena shrugged off her jacket willingly as the woman got out a white makeup cloth.

"The what?" she asked.

The woman, a make-up artist, turned her to the side so that she could get a good look at the devil's trap on her shoulderblade.

"Oh good, it's not red yet." She said, taking the cloth to it.

"No you can't…"

Elena watched with shock as the wipe took off the ink of the tattoo easily.

"Seriously… what the hell?" she breathed.

"All right, there you are. You are free to go. I know that Gen is waiting for you. Have a good night." The woman said before running off.

She stumbled out of the chair, pulling the jacket off, as she walked towards a door. Before she got there, a hand snagged her arm. She turned with shock to see someone unexpected there.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, her eyes widening even further.

Ruby looked at her with a tilt of her head.

"I've been waiting for you. You promised you'd come to my house and help me pick out a dress for the benefit tonight. C'mon, Elena. Don't tell me you forgot." The woman said pleadingly.

Suddenly everything clicked into place and she knew what was going on.

"Right… Gen." she said, assuming this was who the make-up artist said was waiting for her, the actress who played Ruby… not the real demon.

"Let's go. I can't be late tonight."

Gen grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the studio. A crewmember handed her a big purse that she assumed was hers.

"Is Ian coming over?" Fake-Ruby asked as they climbed her car.

"What?" Elena said with big eyes.

"Ian? Your Ian?" she asked.

"Um…" Elena glanced in her purse and saw a phone. "I'll ask."

She pulled it out and turned it on, looking through the contacts until she found a name, Ian.

* * *

"Well, he's not a hunter, but he plays one on TV." Dean said, gesturing to a video of Jensen Ackles acting on the television in the trailer.

He glanced down and saw a magazine on the coffee table with their faces on the front.

"Come on. Look at these male-modelin' sons of bitches. Nice blue steel, Sam." He turned the magazine to face him.

"Hey. Apparently, it's our job." He said defensively. "All right, uh, here goes. Um... it says you're from Texas."

"Really?" Dean said, nodding as he walked back to look at the computer.

"Yeah. And, uh... Oh." Sam made a face. "Says you were on a soap opera."

"What?" he didn't like the sound of that at all.

'If I didn't have cancer, and I wasn't married, and I had plenty of money... would you… would you want to run away with me?" a female voice said.

Dean reached the computer and his eyes widened when he saw a much younger version of himself on the camera in soap opera lighting.

"Money? What, you think I really care about money, Nicole? I care that you're healthy." He said in a dramatic voice.

"Well, I'm no quitter, Eric. I-I…"

Dean reached out and slammed the laptop shut as Sam stared at him.

"Don't like this universe, Sammy. We need to get out of this universe." He said, breathing heavily.

"Yeah. No argument here. But I don't think our… our prayers are reaching Cas. Or the real Cas." Sam said, standing up.

"Well, I agree. I think we are definitely out of, uh, soul-phone range. But..."

"What?" Sam said.

"If we can reverse Balthazar's spell... I watched every move." He picked up a pad of paper and sketched the sigil out. "We just, uh, get the ingredients, right, get back to that same window, and... there's no place like home."

* * *

She felt strange texting someone she didn't even know. But when his reply came, she was relieved that it said that he was unable to make it.

"He says no." she said simply as they drove down a highway.

"That's too bad. Oh well." Gen reached over and took her hand, freaking her out slightly.

The woman did look a lot friendlier than Ruby, which was good.

"We'll have a good time. Jared should be home before I go so you'll see him for a few minutes."

Elena nodded, smiling slightly but she was certain that it came out as more of a grimace.

"You all right?" she asked.

"Yeah, just… tired." Elena said without knowing what else to say.

That's when she looked up and saw a big sign ahead of them with the layout of a city beyond it.

**Welcome to Vancouver**

"Oh." Elena breathed, realizing that she wasn't even in America.

* * *

"Backbone of a lesser saint." Sam said, pulling the bag out of the drawer in the fake study of Bobby's house.

"Got it. Uh..." he poked at it once he pulled it out. "It's rubber."

"Check this out." Dean lifted up a dagger and bent it back and forth.

"Hey, look. It's fake." He threw that dagger aside and picked up another one stabbing it into Sam's chest to show that it slid into the handle. "It's all fake!"

They were unaware that they were being watched.

"Well, at least they're talking to each other." the squat man said, shrugging.

"What are we supposed to do with this crap?" Dean growled.

"Course everything is fake. We're on a film set." Sam sighed as they approached one of the Impalas. "We got to get back to the real world."

"Yeah, now you're talking." Dean sighed as he found the keys in the visor. "All right, we go round up the genuine articles, bring 'em here for the spell."

He started the car and began driving. After going for a few feet, it sputtered and lurched.

"What the hell is going on? What is wrong with this thing?" he demanded as Sam looked around.

A knock on the window startled them and they looked to see a stressed man running alongside the car.

"Mr. Ackles! Mr. Ackles, please!"

"Uh, Dean?" Sam said.

"God, Mr. Ackles, please!" the crewmember pleaded.

"Dean, it's not the impala." Sam informed him.

"Please! Stop."

"You think?" Dean snapped, halting to a stop and hitting the steering wheel. "It's a frigging prop! Just like everything else."

He climbed out as the man looked at him with relieved eyes.

"Oh, thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much for..." the man breathed.

"How the hell are we supposed to get out of here?" Dean snapped.

* * *

Elena looked around the large house as they walked in.

"Wow." She breathed.

"Come on. I don't have time." Gen said, dragging her to the stairs and up them.

When she walked into the bedroom, her mouth dropped open at the huge bed. She sat on it as the other female directed her, unsure of how to act in this situation. She really just needed to find Sam and Dean. That was when she caught sight of the picture on the bedside table. It was Gen with a much taller, very familiar male. They looked happy and even in love. Elena stared at it for a few moments, only looking away when she ran back in the room holding several dresses.

"Which one?" she asked, laying them out.

Elena looked at them and back at Gen, shocked that she was actually being asked to be a girl for once. Not a hunter, not a guardian, not an angel and not a fighter. Just a girl. It hadn't happened in a very long time.

"The black one." She decided.

"I was thinking that one too. This is why we're friends." Gen said, grinning widely. "Go in my closet and pick shoes for me?"

Elena smiled and nodded walking out and disappearing into the closet. She found an entire two shelves full of female shoes. She looked at them and decided on a pair of black strappy heels. When she walked back in, Gen was struggling to zip up the dress.

"I'll do it." she volunteered, zipping it up for her once she tossed the shoes on the bed.

"Oh I love those. You have got good taste." The other female said.

"Thanks." Elena grinned as she watched her sit on the bed to pull them on.

Her eyes went back to the picture.

"I love that picture of you and… Jared." She said, testing whether she was right or not.

"I do too. It's my favorite of us." Gen said with a grin.

"So he's coming here, you said?" Elena asked.

"Yeah, he should be." the woman nodded.

* * *

"You know whereabouts you want me to drop you off? Jensen?" Their driver asked as they sat in the backseat of the large SUV

"Me? Yes. Um... I I'll just tag along with, uh..." he looked at Sam for help.

"Jared." He said quietly.

"Jared... Jared here." He said.

"Huh. Since when are you guys talking?" the man asked, looking in the rearview mirror.

"Yeah, uh, y-you know what, Clint, uh..."

"Uh, uh, Clif." The man interrupted Sam.

"Y-yeah. Yeah, of course. Clif. Obviously. Um, so, uh, I think we're gonna go back to my place a-and do some... work." Sam said.

"Work on our acting." Dean nodded.

"Yeah." Sam agreed.

"For our characters. For the show."

"All right." Clif said.

"Where the hell are we, anyway?" Dean asked.

That was when he caught sight of the **Welcome to Vancouver** sign.

"Dude, we're not even in America." He muttered.

* * *

Dean stared around the huge house as they walked in with shock.

"Nice modest digs, Jay-Z." he said with a raised eyebrow.

"Wow. I must be the star of this thing." Sam breathed.

"Yeah, right." Dean scoffed as they walked into the living room. "Check it out."

He nodded at a strange looking coffin-like thing in the corner.

"What am I, Dracula?" Sam said with confusion.

Dean walked to it and opened it to reveal a tanning bed.

"George Hamilton Dracula." He said with a smirk.

He glanced around and spotted a liquor cabinet.

"Oh. Now we're talking."

Sam rolled his eyes as Dean headed straight for it. They both heard a strange noise and looked around strangely Dean peered out of the glass doors into the backyard, spotting a strange animal.

"Dude, you have a camel in your backyard." He said with a grin, looking at Sam.

"It's an alpaca, dumbass."

They both looked up to see a brunette female leaning over the banister of the second floor. A second person walked out behind her and they both looked up at her with shock. At first, Dean was afraid that Elena wouldn't be Elena but when he saw the relief on her face, he knew that it was her somehow. His attention went back to the other female.

"Ruby?" he asked as they came walking downstairs and into the living room.

"Ruby. Right." she sighed. "That one never gets old."

She rolled her eyes at Dean as Elena hung back with a slightly panicked expression.

"How was work today, hon?" she asked Sam.

Dean shifted uncomfortably as she leaned forward and kissed him. It didn't take her long to notice their strange behavior. She backed away with a raised eyebrow, waiting for an explanation.

"Wait. You and Ruby?" Dean said, looking at Sam.

"Do you honestly think that's funny, Jensen?" the woman snapped, crossing her arms.

"Right. Right. 'cause you're not Ruby. You... I mean, how could you be? You...Of course!" Dean nodded as they all stared at him, Elena with her lips pressed together and Sam with a slightly traumatized expression. "You are the lovely actress who plays Ruby. And you are, uh, in... Jared's house, uh, because you two are..."

He looked around desperately for a way to end that sentence, spotting a wedding photo on the mantle.

"... married! You married fake Ruby?" he hissed to Sam.

"What are you doing?" Fake Ruby asked, tired of Dean as she looked at Sam.

"Work!" he said quickly. "Work."

"Yeah, just, uh, thought I'd pop in, say hey. Hey." Dean waved awkwardly. "Uh, and… and… and maybe run some lines with uh… Jared and I knew that… she would be here to do it with us."

He gestured to Elena since he didn't know what her name was in this life.

"You never talk to Nina outside of work. You've never even been to our house." Jared's wife said suspiciously.

"Well, now that I know there's an alpaca out back, I'm definitely coming back." Dean said with a grin.

"Well, alpacas are the greenest animal." She said in an obvious tone.

"Right. Right. That is so important." Dean agreed with a pained look.

"Well…" she sighed, standing. "… there's that thing I have to get to."

"Oh, yeah. Of course, yeah. The thing." Sam nodded as she walked to him.

"The international otter adoption charity dinner?" she reminded him.

"Oh." He said awkwardly.

"Okay, well..." she leaned in and kissed him again as Dean averted his gaze. "Well, I'm glad you two are talking, anyway."

She looked between them with a slight smile before turning to walk away.

"Do you need me to call you a cab?" Gen asked.

Elena shook her head with a smile.

"No, I'll stay here and talk to Jared for a few minutes and then I'll head out." she said.

"All right. Maybe… figure out why they're acting so weird?" she said, glancing back at the boys.

"Yeah, of course." Elena nodded. "Have fun at the international otter adoption charity dinner."

"Thanks." Gen grinned at her before turning to walk out.

"Well, looks like you did all right." Dean commented.

"Yeah. Yeah." Sam nodded emphatically.

Elena stared at them both with an unimpressed look.

"I should figure out her name." he realized.

"I can't believe I had to follow you into an alternate universe. What the hell?" she said, walking forward and grabbing Dean into a tight hug.

He hugged her back, burying his face in her hair. When he let her go, she turned to Sam and hugged him as well.

"So… Nina?" Dean said, smirking.

"Shut up, Jensen." She shot back.

"No but wait… you'll never guess what Cas' actor's name is." He said.

"What?" she asked.

"Misha." They said at the same time and she bit her lip.

"Misha? Really?" she said, laughing.

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Oh wow. This place is fucked up. We have to get home." she said.

"Yeah no kidding. Wait… how did you get here?" Sam asked.

"Gabriel sent me." she said simply.

They stared at her.

"I couldn't leave my boys unprotected." She shrugged.

Grins broke out on both of the brothers' faces. Elena smiled back before remembering something.

"Although… I may not be of much help for anything." She sighed.

"What?" Dean said.

She walked to the coffee table and hovered her hand over a pen, concentrating on it. It didn't even wobble.

"See? Nothing. No telekesis. No teleportation. No super strength." She said.

Dean and Sam exchanged wary looks.

"Well then let's get our asses out of her as soon as possible." Dean said.

* * *

They were in the study. Elena and Dean were sitting at a table with him on a laptop and her on her phone. Sam was on the desktop computer looking stuff up.

"Wrist bone of saint and holy reliquary. Museum-quality, from diocese in Oaxaca. Looks legit." He said.

"All right. Auction house is in Mexico City. We could be there day after tomorrow. We, uh, case it, yank it, be back here by the end of the week." Dean said, looking up at Sam.

"Or we could just buy it." the younger brother said.

"What?! Dude, that thing's over a hundred thou…"

Sam held up a black credit card.

"Hello, Jared Padalecki." Dean grinned.

He glanced over at Elena to see her smirking slightly.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Looking up your filmography. Soap opera?" she said, raising her eyebrow at him.

Sam let out a laugh as he dialed another number.

"Oh you have no room to talk, New York Minute." She shot at him.

His smile disappeared.

"Oh yeah, and like I can't find anything on you." Dean said.

Elena stared at him for a moment before going back to her phone to type in her information. When she clicked on the pictures, she made the mistake of clicking on the pictures that were there as she took a drink of water. She choked on it as she scrolled through them.

"What?" Dean asked, thumping her back.

"Nothing." She wheezed.

Though she had figured out who Ian probably was.

"Cubrir a su amigo en la aduana. no? Bueno." Sam said to the phone several minutes later.

"Triple rush. No problemo. Because money is no ob…" a beep sounded on the computer as Dean clicked around. "… this baby's maxed."

He tossed the card away and pulled another one out of Sam's wallet.

"Wow. They said it should be at the airport first thing in the morning." He said.

"Money, man. There is nothing like it. All right." Dean closed the computer and stood, stretching.

"Couch. TV star. Beauty rest."

Elena walked to it as well, shoving him aside.

"Move, I need room too." She said.

"Why do you get to take up my couch?" he whined.

"Because I need a place to stay too." She said.

"Why can't you both go to Jensen's place?" Sam said.

"Shut up, Sam." they both said.

* * *

Sam was wandering the halls as he looked around at everything and drank a beer. The front door opened and shut and he looked up to see fake Ruby walking in as she looked down at her purse.

"Hey! Hey. Hi. Hi, uh, Gen… Genevieve. Gen?" he stammered.

"Gen." she said.

"Gen. Of course. Yeah. Um, so, h-how was the... otter thing?" he asked.

"It was good." She nodded, pulling her jacket off.

"Yeah?" Sam smiled at her.

"Everybody missed you there."

She handed him her jacket and he tossed it over his arm.

"I bet. So… so listen, I-I got to ask you a question. Do you remember, uh, uh, year before last, all those disasters?" he asked.

"Disasters?" Gen asked, looking confused.

"Yeah. Yeah, yeah, the whole earthquake spike. You know, the… the 9.2 in Rome? I mean, the… the 8.5 outside Boston? The whole east/west tsunami chain?" he listed.

"Yes. I remember all of those from last season on your show." She said.

"No, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I-I know. I know. That - that's what I mean. That's what I was..." he took a long drink form his beer.

"You have been Sam Winchester way too long." She said with a smile, leaning in to kiss him passionately.

She leaned back and held out her hand, grinning. He hesitated before taking, following her upstairs willing.

* * *

Elena yawned as she walked into the kitchen to find Gen making coffee.

"Why did you stay here last night?" the other female asked, handing her a cup.

"We were, uh, running lines. I've been doing bad on them. It's really hard, keeping up with lines for two different TV shows." She said.

"Well… either way, the crossover for TVD and Supernatural is going great, you know. You're getting great reviews." Gen said, smiling at her.

"Yeah." Elena said.

She'd done research the previous night, learning that she was just on Sam and Dean's show but she was on a separate one that she was the main character of. It followed her life closely with a few differences but not many. It was filmed mostly in Atlanta but some things were shot in Vancouver when she was there filming for Supernatural.

"I thought you hated Jensen, though. You can't stand to be around him." Gen reminded her.

"Yeah, yeah he's… he drives me insane. But Jared helped me a lot." She said.

"Of course. He's a sweetheart." The other woman said with a happy smile.

Elena stared at her for a moment, almost wishing that she could take this version back to their world with them. She was happy with him and if she could make him happy, it would be worth it. But she knew that it was impossible. It saddened her that Sam would have to leave that behind.

* * *

They were all waiting in the car as Sam picked up the packages from the airplane. Clif, their driver, had been shocked when he found Elena at Jared's house with them.

"So I don't mean to pry, but, uh, why are we picking up packages at 8:00 A.M. that haven't cleared customs yet?" the man asked.

"Just saving time." Dean said simply.

Sam walked back to the car and slid in on the other side of Elena, leaving her in the middle.

"All right, here we go." Dean said happily, ready to get home.

"We're not doing anything illegal, are we?" Clif questioned, looking at them in the rearview mirror.

"Would it make you feel better if we said no?" Sam asked.

"No." Clif said, shaking his head as he drove off.

* * *

They all rushed into the set, going to the fake study. Elena and Dean watched as Sam opened up the package. Suddenly all the lights above them turned on.

"Whoa. What?"

Activity began bustling around them and they turned to see two men walk in. One of them was the squat director and the other was the assistant director.

"We finish today in 12 hours if it kills us all. Get A and B cam for scene 12." The man noticed them. "What is this?"

His eyes flashed over all of them.

"Here for the first run-through, before anyone else? All three of you? Dedication." He nodded proudly as they stared at him.

"Uh, can I talk to you for a second? Um, we're gonna need the, uh, set cleared for… safe side, an hour or so." Dean said, looking down at him.

"You need it cleared." The man said.

"Yeah. Yeah. Me and, um... Jared and Nina were gonna do some actor stuff."

Elena pulled Sam away to open the package at chairs that were labelled with their names.

"Jensen, we're thrilled to see you collaborating so creatively. And your enthusiasm is refreshing. Dean Cain was like that on Lois, And that man's a real actor. And we will clear this set exactly when we shoot the 2 3/8 pages we are scheduled to shoot on this set. So you do your actor stuff and we'll do our camera stuff and, uh..."

Dean stared at the man before turning to walk off.

"Ooh, priority. What's in it?" a voice said behind Elena and Sam as Sam looked into the box.

Elena turned to see fake Cas sitting there.

"I bought part of a dead person." Sam answered without looking at him.

Misha's eyes flashed to Elena and she smiled slightly.

"Oh, cool."

"Uh, so, bad news. Uh... looks like we're gonna have to do a little acting." Dean said.

"What?" Sam and Elena both stared at him with wide eyes.

"Time to get you three into make-up and wardrobe."

They were dragged off in different directions without much of a choice in the matter.

* * *

Elena sighed with relief when she was finally released from the wardrobe department fully dressed with her hair and make-up done perfectly.

"Nina!" she hesitated before turning at her name.

Her eyes widened when she saw who it was.

"Dam… Ian!" she corrected herself, flushing.

"Hey, I missed you last night. Where were you?" he asked, walking towards her.

"I was… doing actor stuff… with other actors. I was at Jared and Gen's house." She said.

"Oh… that's nice. I wish you would have told me. I was worried." He said as he drew closer.

"I'm sorry… I…"

She was cut off by his lips suddenly being on hers. She was frozen for a moment before shoved him away and instinctively slapped him just as she would Damon. Apparently her instincts didn't matter even if this was the actor who played the egotistical vampire and she was pretending to be his actress girlfriend.

"I'm so sorry!" she gasped as he rubbed his cheek in surprise. "They just told me not to mess up my make-up or hair. It was a kneejerk reaction."

He looked at her with wide eyes.

"It's all right. I just wasn't expecting it." he admitted.

She grimaced and shook her head.

"I have to go film. I'll talk to you… later." She said, running away from him towards the studio.

When she ran into the study set, Dean and Sam gave her a questioning look.

"You don't wanna know." She informed them.

They were quickly put into position and they all went back to panicking about acting.

"Supernatural scene 36, take 1. Marker!"

"Action!" the director called.

Elena was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed as Dean and Sam stood behind Misha, who had the first line of the scene. Luckily, she didn't have many lines in this scene and she was good at memorization. Dean and Sam, whowever, looked terrified.

"Balthazar is no hero. But he knows Raphael will never take him back." Misha as Cas said, turning to walk towards the cameras.

Sam flinched as Dean took a step forward. He missed his mark and looked down, shuffling over.

"Cut!" Bob, the director, shouted.

"Supernatural scene 36, take 8. Marker!"

"Action!"

Elena watched as Sam kept rearranging his arms awkwardly. They hadn't even gotten to her first line yet.

"Balthazar is no hero. But he knows Raphael will never take him back." Misha said, walking forward.

Dean hesitated before glancing down at the script in his hand.

"Dean, grimly. And yet, somehow you got no problem with it." he recited.

The entire crew all stared at him incredulously.

"Cut!" Bob yelled.

Elena watched as Misha mouthed 'what the hell' at the camera.

"Action."

"And yet we're stuck in this house hiding from Raphael." Elena finally said, still leaning against the wall. "We should be out there stopping him from slaughtering all of your allies."

"It's because... it's because we have no other choice." Sam said nervously.

"Don't look at the camera." Dean hissed at him.

"What?" Sam said back.

"Look anywhere but the camera."

She bit back a grin as Sam stared at the ceiling.

"It's because we have no other choice!" he said, looking straight up.

"Cut! For the love of..." the director shook his head.

"Action!"

Sam raised his arm stiffly.

"If there's a key... then there has to be a lock. And when we find the lock, we can get the weapons, and then we can have the weapons." Sam said.

Elena almost wanted to sigh with relief when he got through the dialogue. She was standing beside him now, having moved to her mark gracefully.

"And the lock." Sam said and she wanted to stop him right then and there. "We'll still have the lock, I imagine, because we've opened it, and, of course, the initial key."

"We need to get all three of that crap." Dean growled, cutting him off.

"What?" Sam looked at him with wide eyes.

"That's how he talks." He shrugged.

"Oh." Sam nodded, turning back to look at Misha.

Dean finally broke and looked out the window at Bob.

"Do we really need all these lines? I mean, I-I think we've covered it. Right?" he said pleadingly.

"Cut!" he yelled. "What is happening? What's happening?! What's happening?!"

Elena winced as they heard him shouting. They all walked to their chairs to sit down.

"Who wrote this? Nobody says penultimate!" Sam said as he looked through the script.

"Gun, mouth." Dean made a gun gesture at his mouth. "Now."

Elena glanced at Misha to see him looking both annoyed and amused.

"Moving on!" Bob yelled.

"Thank god." Dean sighed.

Elena was drinking water as Dean and Sam scurried into the study with the supplies for the spell.

"I-m-h-o, 'J' and 'J' had a late one last night." She heard Misha saying. "R-o-t-f-l-m-a-o."

She looked back to see him typing on his phone. Rolling her eyes at his complete oppositeness from Cas, she stood and walked into the study.

"All right, damn it. We earned this." Dean said as they assembled the spell.

"Spell it out for me, please. What is our terror-alert level here?" Sera asked over the phone.

"I don't know, Sera. Orange, maybe? They started talking to each other." Bob sighed.

"What?! But that's a good thing." She said happily.

"Right. I thought so. But now Jensen's living at Jared's house. Nina stayed there last night too so she may be involved in the crazy." He said, not noticing Elena drawing a blood sigil on the window behind them.

"That's it?" Sam asked.

She nodded at him.

"Plus, Clif says they're smuggling illegal stuff in from Mexico." Bob said into the phone.

"That's it, Toto." Dean confirmed.

"Misha's celebrity tweet says it's a black-market organ thing. I'm betting drugs." The assistant director, Kevin, said.

The three slowly backed away, getting ready to leap through. An assistant passed, giving them a strange look. Dean raised his hand and flippd the guy off, causing him to run away.

"Anyway, as far as I can see, I think they've lost any shred of talent they ever had."

They all ran at the window, turning to their sides as they jumped through. They all groaned loudly when they hit the hard concrete ground, unfortunately still in the studio.

"Ow that one hurt." Dean grumbled as they sat up and looked around with discouraged looks.

"Drugs." Kevin repeated.

* * *

"Maybe we did it wrong." Sam suggested as they walked into Jensen's trailer.

Elena stared at the aquarium as they did so with an unimpressed look, wishing that she could heal the deep bone bruises that she was certain they had.

"No. No, that… that spell was perfect. It should have worked." Dean argued as they collapsed onto the couch.

"What if it can't? Look, I was up all night, looking online. There's no sign that anything like the apocalypse happened here. Ever. And as far as I can tell, monsters, ghosts, demons… they're all pretend." Sam said.

"So nobody's hunting them?" Dean asked.

"No hunters. Look, maybe that's why our spell didn't work, you know? M-maybe here, there's no supernatural, no magic."

"No demons, no hell, no heaven, no… no God?" Elena asked.

"Something like. Even better… no angels." Sam said.

Back in the studio on the motel room set, a window glowed with a sigil and a figure came crashing through, looking up with a look of a man with a mission.

* * *

"Okay, maybe we can't get out of, uh, you know, Earth number two right now, but the least we can do is get the hell out of the Canadian part of it." Dean said as they walked through the set into a set of tunnels.

"Yeah." Sam sighed.

"I hear one more conversation about hockey, I'm gonna puke." Dean said.

"Wait a minute. This way, this way, this way." Sam claimed, pulling Elena one way.

"No, no, no, no, no. It's this way. It's this way!" Dean snapped, pulling her the other way.

"I'm not a tug of war rope!" she hissed.

"No, Dean, look, I really… I really think that we should…"

They were looked back at him so they didn't see the man approaching them. Sam, however, did see him.

"Dean!"

They both turned to see Virgil standing there.

"You think you can run?"

Dean flinched back as he held his hand out. Sam and Elena cried out when he pressed his hand to it. But nothing happened and Virgil looked frustrated and even a little scared.

"Sorry, dude." Dean smirked at him. "Mojo-free zone."

He launched out and punched Virgil, causing him to stagger backwards. Sam launched forward and joined in on kicking the mojo-less angel's ass. Elena would have helped but she had no mojo either so she wouldn't have been much help.

"No magic in the house." Sam said, holding Virgil as Dean punched him.

"Which makes you nothing but a dick." Dean said.

Elena heard shouts behind them and she was shoved out of the way as people ran up to separate them.

"No, no, no, no! Stop! You don't understand! No, no, no!" Sam yelled as they were dragged off of the angel.

"No stop! It's okay!" Elena assured them.

"You're dead, Virgil! Virgil! I'm gonna break your friggin' neck! Hey!" Dean shouted as he ran off.

* * *

"I'm trying to understand, Bob." Sera's voice said over the speakerphone.

"Well, uh, Sera, we don't really understand it ourselves, but, uh, it appears that Jared and Jensen were seen beating an extra to death. And Nina was, uh, standing back watching. She tried to convince our guys to let them beat him to death." Bob explained.

"Huh." Sera said, not sure how to take that.

"This is Jim here, Sera, and it wasn't all the way to death. Only partway, so that's a plus." Jim said.

"He could definitely still run." Kevin said.

"And we'll certainly follow up on that, but I think the real issue here, Sera, is that the boys appear to be on some kind of extended psychedelic acid trip." Bob said.

"Okay. Uhh..Maybe it'd help if I… I'll fly up and talk to them." She said over the phone.

"You know, I'm not sure Jared and Jensen... know who she is, strictly speaking." Jim said. "She's, you know, new. No offense."

"Right." Sera sighed.

"Yeah, I think what we might need at this stage is for Kripke to come up himself. He created the show. They'll listen to him." Bob suggested.

"How's that make me look? I'm supposed to be running this thing. Besides, Eric is off in some cabin somewhere Writing his next pilot."

* * *

"I don't know. I mean, Virgil broke through. Maybe he's got a way to get back." Dean said as they sat there nursing their knucke wounds.

"Or he has no juice here, and now he's stuck, like us." Sam said.

"Yeah, either way, I want to finish kicking his ass." Dean sighed.

* * *

Elena was walking away from the make-up trailer where she was dragged to get her make-up taken off when she saw Misha coming out of his trailer from far off.

"Good night, Misha." A crewmember said to him.

"Night, little fella." He said without looking at the man.

Elena rolled her eyes at his conceitedness. He climbed into his car and she watched as he hesitated, looking around. Then he smiled and took out his phone. He was speaking as he typed once more. She almost smiled as she thought of how Cas would react to seeing this man who looked like him but was nothing like him. Suddenly panic appeared on Misha's face and that's when she saw the blade against his throat and the shadowed figure in the backseat. He moved enough into the light for her to see that it was Virgil.

"Hey!" she ran forward.

The car took off before she could get to it.

"Nina?" she turned to see Damo… Ian standing by a car staring at her. "You ready to go?"

She ran to him quickly, grabbing his keys and yanking the driver's door open.

"I need to borrow your car, I'll be back." she said, slamming the door shut.

"Hey! Nina! What are you…" Ian couldn't get the rest of his words out as she took off after Virgil and Misha.

* * *

Dean and Sam were looking for both Elena and Virgil as they wandered around the set. When they walked into Bobby's study, a light flicked on at the desk to reveal Bob sitting there.

"There you are, guys! You got a minute?" he asked.

"Actually, we're… we're looking for, uh…" Sam stammered.

"...for that extra you tried to kill?" Bob asked, quieting them. "So, is it money? Is this the kind of act that goes away if we can scare up some coverage on a raise?"

"More money? You already pay these two jokers enough as it is." Dean scoffed.

"Yeah." Sam agreed.

"Cause I'd like to think that over these years, we've grown closer. That you don't think of me as director Bob or executive producer Bob Singer, but as uncle Bob." He said.

"Wait, you're kidding. So, the character in the show, Bobby Singer…" Sam said, figuring something out.

"What kind of douchebag names a character after himself?" Dean said, raising his eyebrow.

"Oh, that's not right." Sam said.

"Okay, guys, let's begin again." Bob sighed.

"Yeah." They said at the same time.

"You know, I don't think Virgil would have shagged out of here without getting his mitts on that key." Dean said, facing Sam.

"Yeah. Yeah, I agree." He nodded.

"Guys... you can't come to work on poppers and smuggle kidneys in from Mexico and make up your own lines as you go! You cannot make up your own lines! Good god, what about your careers?" Bob demanded.

"You know what? Screw our careers, Bob." Sam snapped at him as he felt his pockets for the key.

"What?!" Bob said, shocked.

"You heard my brother. That's right, I said brother. Cause you know what, Bob? We're not actors. We're hunters. We're the Winchesters. Always have been, and always will be. And where we're from, people don't know who we are. But you know what? We mattered in that world. In fact, we even saved a son of a bitch once or twice. And yeah, okay, here, maybe there's some… some fans who give a crap about this nonsense."

"I wouldn't call it nonsense." Bob cut in.

"But, Bob Singer… if that even is your name… tell me this… what does it all mean?" Dean demanded.

"Okay. This is good. I mean, we've all had our psychotic breaks, right? I can work with this." Bob nodded.

"Dean. Virgil… I think he has the key." Sam broke in, panicking.

Dean stared at him for a moment before looking at Bob.

"We quit." He said.

Sam nodded at the director as they walked out.

* * *

"Okay, okay, okay. Easy, easy." Misha whimpered as he was shoved through the alley by the man.

"How do you do it?" Virgil growled.

"Please." He pleaded.

"Live in this grubby, shabby desert? Nothing greater than yourselves." He shoved Misha against the wall. "Nothing but dirt when you die."

"What?" the actor said.

"No power, no magic."

"I'm so… I'm not following you at all." He said.

"There's no magic in your universe!"

Elena crept into the alley as quietly as she could, wanting to take Virgil by surprise since was weak and she really only had one shot at this.

"I'm sorry! Please!" Misha pleaded.

"Nothing but a bag of strings and pulleys." Virgil said, staring at him as he drew out a knife and a bowl. "You should thank me for what I'm about to do."

"Why? What are you about to do?" he asked with fear shaking his voice.

"I need to make an important call. I pray to god that it even goes through."

Elena finally ran forward, thankful that she had experience running in heels. Virgil heard her too late, turning at the last second to see her pounce on him, knocking him to the ground. She attempted to wrestle the knife out of his grip but he shoved her off. She quickly sprung to her feet, standing protectively in front of Misha.

"I can kill you now, little girl." He threatened.

"I've already called the cops. They're coming and if you're here when they get here, you'll be arrested. You have no power here, Virgil. They can put you in jail for years and you'll never get out." She threatened.

"I don't have time for this." he growled, turning to run off.

Elena hesitated before making to run after him.

"No! Nina you can't! He'll kill you." Misha said, catching her.

They suddenly heard a choking noise around the corner and Elena looked at Misha with wide eyes. She threw his grip off and ran forward, turning the corner to see that Virgil was standing over a body. A homeless man was lying on the ground with blood pouring out of the wound in his throat. A voice seemed to be whispering through the air and she heard what it was saying. It suddenly occurred to her exactly what Virgil had been doing.

* * *

"Maybe we can get on the police dispatch system." Sam suggested, glancing around to see if Elena was there.

"Put out an A.P.B on Virgil. Might work, if he stays obvious. Where is Elena?" Dean said.

"I don't know. We need to find her. It's not like we have a lot of time." Sam said.

"Oh, my god! Oh, my god!" They both turned to see Gen screamed and crying.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Misha! He's was attacked! He was almost stabbed to death!"

The brothers exchanged a look.

"Where?"

* * *

Sam and Dean looked around as they approached crime scene. They both sighed with relief when they saw Elena talking to a police officer. Misha was sitting in the back of an ambulance getting checked out. When she spotted them, she nodded at the officer, turning to walk to them.

"Virgil called Raphael using a blood spell." She said instantly.

"What did he say?" Dean asked.

"Raphael said for Virgil to return tomorrow at the place where he crossed over at the time of the crossing and Raphael will reach through the window and take him and the key home." she recited what she'd heard.

"Uh, if Virgil gets back with that key, Cas is dead, and our world is toast." Sam said.

"Well, then we stop him. I mean, how bad can an angel with no wings be?" Dean shrugged.

* * *

Virgil watched as the man laid out a gun on the counter.

"I'd like to see that pump-action tactical, 12-gauge." He said, pointing to another gun hanging up behind the counter.

"You bet. Nice choice. You really know your ordnance, mister." The clerk said.

"I am the weapons keeper of heaven." He said, picking up the weapon and inspecting it.

"Excuse me?" the man asked, confused.

"It's my job." He said simply.

* * *

"You know that if we drop Virgil, get the key, then this might be it. We might be stuck here." Dean said as they gathered in the study set at the studio the next morning.

"No, we'll figure out a way back." Sam said confidently.

"Yeah, you wouldn't be that broken up if we didn't, though. To be honest, neither would I." Dean said, looking at him.

Elena looked at him questioningly.

"What? Don't be stupid." Sam scoffed.

"Well, I'm just saying. No hell below us, above us only sky." Dean shrugged.

"Dean, our friends are back there. Elena's family… Bobby." Sam said.

"Yeah, but here, you got a pretty good life. I mean, back home, the hits have been coming since you were 6 months old. You got to admit, being a bazillionare, married to Ruby, the whole package. It's no contest." Dean said.

"No, you know, you were right. We just don't mean the same thing here. I mean, we're not even brothers here, man." Sam said.

Dean stared at him before nodding.

"All right, then. Let's get our crazy show back home." he said.

* * *

Bob sighed with relief when he saw the hummer pull up.

"Oh, this might be him here."

"Bob, dude. What the hell, right?" Kripke asked when he climbed out, shaking the director's hand.

"Eric. Thanks for coming." Bob said.

"Of course."

"I know you're busy. It means a lot that we can still, you know, call on you." he said.

"Yeah. Misha, right?" Eric said, nodding.

"Oh, I know, I know. It's just awful!" Bob shook his head solemnly at the thought that one of their actors was almost murdered but was thankfully saved by one of their other actors.

"It's totally,totally awful. Yeah. It got us the front page of Variety, though. Did you see that?" Eric said.

"Front page? Really?" Bob asked.

"Yeah, yeah." He nodded.

"Yeah. Okay, so I am just gonna bust in their trailer, guns blazing, and then take care of this whole mess and…"

A crewmember ran up to Bob, gettng his attention.

"What's the matter?" Bob asked.

"What?" Eric said when Bob's eyes widened at the man who was walking towards them from far off.

"That guy." He nodded towards him. "I think that's the extra!"

"Oh, fantastic. We can nip this bud right out of the gate. Hey, extra! Over here!"

The crewmember noticed something and panicked.

"Gun! He's got a gun!"

Eric was shot by the man several times, falling to the ground.

Inside, the crew all looked around with . SUPERNATURAL SET

"I don't think we have gunfire on the call sheet today, hmm?" Kevin said with confusion.

He was cut off from saying anythign else by getting shot as well as several other crewmembers.

"Hey!"

Virgil whirled around to see Elena standing there.

"Still wanna kill me?" she ran off as he pointed the gun at her.

He ran after her into the motel room where he'd come through the dimensions. Dean lunged out from behind the door and punched him. Sam joined the fight and they knocked him to the ground, finally beating him unconscious. Elena bent at his side and dug through his pockets, pulling out the key.

"Got it!" she claimed triumphantly, holding it up.

Sam noticed the glowing sigil on the window.

"Raphael. Run!" he yelled.

They all turned to run but were suddenly yanked through the window with an inescapable force. They fell backwards on hard, cold gravel, wincing as glass cut through their skin in several places. Elena rolled over on her side to see that the key had flown out of her hands and several feet away. She looked up to see a woman approaching them.

"You three... have the strangest luck." She said as they scrambled to their feet, staring at her.

"Raphael? Nice meatsuit. Dude looks like a lady." Dean muttered.

Raphael squeezed her fist and they all three both bent over, wincing in pain as they fell to their knees. Blood bubbled up in Elena's mouth and she spit it out, glaring at the archangel.

"The key." She bent over and picked it up from the ground.

"And that will open you a locker at the Albany bus station."

They all turned to see Balthazar standing there looking rather proud of himself. Elena helped Dean and Sam up and began working on healing all three of them.

"Really." Raphael said.

"You see, I needed a modest decoy to make it more convincing." The angel said.

"Give me the weapons." She said, starting forward.

"Sorry, darling. They're gone." He shrugged.

"What?!" Raphael demanded.

"I said, too bloody late. You see, they were so well-hidden that I needed time to find them. So, I volunteered these two marmosets and their guardian for a game of fetch with Virgil. You two were such an adequate stick. Thank you." he nodded at them.

"You've made your last mistake." Raphael growled, lifting her hand.

"Oh, I've got a few more up my sleeve, honey." Balthazar said with a smirk.

"Step away from him, Raphael."

They all turned with surprise to see Castiel standing there.

"I have the weapons now. Their power is with me."

They watched as lightning flashed and showed his wings against the wall of the motel.

"Castiel." Raphael said with anger in her voice.

"If you don't want to die tonight, back off." Cas threatened.

Raphael stared at him for a moment before disappearing from the parking lot.

"Well, Cas... now that you have your sword, try not to die by it." Balthazar said before disappearing.

Castiel turned to them and walked up to them. His hands went to Sam and Dean's shoudlers and Elena reached out to snag his coat before could take off without her. They appeared in Bobby's house, the hunter jumping up when he saw them.

"Cas, what the hell? Wait, wait, you were in on this, using us a diversion?" Sam demanded.

"It was Balthazar's plan." Cas said, turning away from them. "I would have done the same thing."

"That's not comforting, Cas." Elena said, looking at him with a confused and hurt look.

Cas turned to him with a frustrated look.

"When will I be able to make you understand? If I lose against Raphael, we all lose. Everything."

"Yeah, Cas. We know the stakes. That's about all you've told us!" Dean snapped.

"I'm sorry about all this. I'll explain when I can." He said before disappearing.

Dean glanced around, shaking his head.

"Friggin' angels." He growled.

Sam walked to the wall and knocked on it, sighing with relief.

"Solid." He breathed. "It's nice."

"Yeah. Yeah, real, moldy, termite-eaten home sweet home. Chock full of crap that want to skin you. Oh, and, uh, we're broke again."

"Yeah. But, hey..." Sam walked to Dean, putting his hand on his shoulder. "… at least we're talking."

Dean smirked, shaking his head.

* * *

"That's quite an adventure." Gabriel said.

Dean and Sam were sleeping, Dean upstairs and Sam on the couch. Elena and Gabriel were outside sitting on the hood of one of the broken down cars in the lot.

"It was… different." She said.

Then she looked down at the coffee in her hands.

"You wouldn't have believed Cas if you saw him. He's so different." She said softly. "I wish I could help him but he won't let me."

"I wish I could help him too." Gabriel admitted.

Elena looked at him.

"Then why don't you?" she asked, her tone slightly accusing.

He sighed, nodding.

"Let me start at the beginning."

* * *

**Author's Note: Sorry guys, the explanation will have to wait for later. I have school in five hours and I need sleep. I hope that I didn't disappoint with this chapter. There was a lot more that I wanted to do with it but I didn't have time. I'm sorry. Review please!**

A certain Campbell comes back in the next chapter. Dun dun dun.


	21. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to Thenchick, TheElegantFaerie, Nyssandria, CherrySin, RHatch89, thestralboggart, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Dean Winchester Rocks, RippahGoneWolf, xxPaige23xx, SwanQueen4055, JMHUW, and DrawingMyHeartOut for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**2. I changed the chapter up to include Elena quite a bit. **

**3. A big thing about the necklace is revealed.**

* * *

"You're trying to tell me that your father, that God, planned on us stopping the apocalypse? That Michael knew that we would stop it?" Elena said, raising her eyebrow at him.

"As it is written in prophecy." Gabriel said.

She scoffed and slid off of the hood of the car, turning to face him.

"He is aware that Raphael is trying to take control of heaven, right? That he's trying to bring back the apocalypse and the only thing standing in his way is Castiel?" she said.

"He knows." Gabriel confirmed.

"Let me guess… part of the plan." Elena said, crossing her arms over her chest.

He gave her a shrug.

"Care to tell me the rest of the plan so I can stop being taken by surprise?" she asked, frustrated.

"I wish I could, kid. But I've told you everything I know. I'm not exactly privy to the entire plan myself. God works in mysterious ways, you know, and he doesn't always reveal them." Gabriel said.

She stared at him for a moment.

"I believe you. I don't know why I do… but I do." She sighed.

"Well… that's something." He said.

She bit her lip and looked down at her feet.

"Now let me tell you what I know." She said.

* * *

The night was cold and he was ready to get home to his family. He sighed as he pulled the gas pump out of the truck and replaced it in the slot on the machine. When he turned to climb in his truck after collecting the receipt, he came face to face with a young woman.

"Whoa." He started and stepped back

"I'm sorry." She said sweetly. "Did I scare you?"

He looked down to see that her white dress was dirty and she wasn't wearing shoes.

"You okay? You look a little…"

"Well, I could use a ride." She cut him off, smiling.

He hesitated, getting a strange feeling from her.

"Okay." He finally said.

They climbed into the truck and he turned to her.

"So, what's your name, sweetheart?" he asked.

She looked over at him.

"Eve." She said simply.

"Eve." He repeated. "I'm Rick. So, how far you going, Eve?"

"However far you want." She said with a coy grin, leaning over to kiss him.

He gently pushed her off.

"Whoa, whoa. Eve." She stared at him questioningly. "Look, you're very pretty, but this is not what's right for you. Trust me."

Something unrecognizable flashed through her eyes and then she looked amused.

"Then what's right for me?" she asked.

Rick reached down and pulled a pamphlet from his church out. He handed it to her and she glanced down at it.

"This emptiness you feel inside… it's really a hunger for him." he said, referring to the painting of Jesus on the front.

"You do know that Jesus was just a man." she said, staring at him.

"Sure, but he was also the son of God, sent here because he loves us." Rick said.

She scoffed slightly.

"God doesn't care about you."

Rick looked at her with a surprised look.

"Sure he does." He replied.

"Your father made you and then abandoned you, so you pray. You see signs where there's nothing. But truth is, your apocalypse came and went, and you didn't even notice. A mother would never abandon her children like he did. You'll see." She said, sounding certain.

"See what?" Rick asked, confused by her words.

She tilted her head to the side.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

He nodded once and she leaned over, putting her mouth at his ear. All of the sudden, he felt an intense pain and he yelled out, struggling against her.

* * *

Elena smiled sympathetically at the woman as she jumped out of her seat at the sight of her.

"Elena." she sighed as she stood. "I thought you were going to come days ago."

"I'm sorry. I got caught up in stuff. Is everything all right?" she asked, noticing the woman's pale face.

"No, it is not. You didn't tell me that… that this is connected to the Mother." She said, shoving the necklace into Elena's hands.

"What is it?" Elena asked, panicked. "And how did you know about her?"

"I can't do this. I can't research this any more. Take it away and don't bring it back. I mean it, Elena. I can't get involved with this." Elle said, shaking her head.

"What has got you so scared? What is this Mother doing?" Elena asked.

"You need to leave. I can't… I can't be found. I have to leave." She said, turning to walk out of the room.

Elena stared after her with a helpless expression. She looked down at the necklace before sighing and closing her eyes. She reappeared in the autoyard and Gabriel looked at her questioningly.

"It turns out that I don't know anything." She said, walking to him.

She held out the necklace and he took it.

"This is the necklace that the woman from purgatory gave you?" he asked.

"Yep." She nodded.

He inspected it closely, turning it over in his hands.

"I could take it to heaven, see if I can find any information on it… if you trust me." Gabriel said, looking up at her.

Elena stared at him for a moment before nodding.

"That would be helpful, thank you. I just want to know it's connection to me and why I feel such a pull to it."

Gabriel nodded and she caught his hand before he could disappear.

"For what it's worth… I'm not… mad at you anymore. I'm having a hard time trusting Chuck/God right now but I realize that you are just doing what you think is right. I may not agree with it but… I don't think you're against us either." She said.

Gabriel nodded, smiling slightly.

"Thank you." he said.

"Thank you." she replied, gesturing to the necklace.

Before he could go, she pulled him into a hug.

"I'll see you later, okay?" she asked.

"Sooner than you want to, probably." He said with a smirk as he pulled away.

She smiled at him, feeling lighter now that she'd somewhat made up with her guardian angel.

"Have fun up there." she said.

"Oh yeah, research is my favorite." He said, holding up the necklace with a teasing grin before he disappeared.

* * *

They were standing over Bobby's desk looking down at a map. Elena was behind Dean with her arms wrapped around his waist and her head pressed against his back. She didn't need to look at the information because she and Bobby gathered it while Sam and Dean were out on a beer run.

"I've been getting blasts from hunters all week." Bobby pulled out a red sharpie and began circling locations as he spoke. "Nest of vamps. Werewolf dance party. Shifters, six of them. Two hunters died taking them out. Ghouls, ghouls. Ghoul-wraith smorgasbord."

Dean and Sam stared down at it.

"Is it just me, or is that a straight kick-line down I-80?" Dean said.

"Exactly." Bobby nodded.

"Looks to me like it's a Sherman march monster mash." He said.

"Yeah, but where are they marching to?" Sam asked.

Elena peeked around Dean as Bobby circled another point on the map.

"What is it?" Sam questioned.

"Guy bashes in his family's heads." Bobby answered.

* * *

Elena sat at the table with the Dean and Sam on either side of her and Bobby leaning against the window behind them.

"Just tell us what happened, Mr. Sumpter." She said softly with a sympathetic tone to her voice.

The man looked terrible, emotional and broken down.

"It's like I told the cops. I blacked out." he said, his voice sounding like he was fighting back the urge to cry.

"Well, just tell us what you do remember." Sam said.

"Driving my regular route, and then I-I woke up in my truck at work." Rick answered.

"And where's work?" Elena asked.

"Starlight Cannery. I-I didn't remember how I got there... so I called home. When no one picked up. I-I went there, and I found..." he trailed off, shaking his head.

"Anything unusual before you blacked out? Sights, smells, anything off the routine?" Bobby asked where he was in the corner.

"No. Basic night. I was giving some kid from the truck stop a ride. She took off. I-I think she took off." he answered.

"Anything else?" Dean questioned.

Rick looked at Elena with a pleading look, as if he was begging for her to believe him and to forgive him.

"I swear… I didn't mean to do it. I-I loved them." He cried.

Elena bit her lip as Dean put his hand on her shoulder, a signal that it was time to go. She wished that she could help the man because she was almost certain that he was innocent. But there was nothing that she could do. He would most likely go to prison and die by lethal injection if the death penalty was given to him. She sighed, sliding out of her chair and walking out of the room wearily.

* * *

Elena, Dean, and Bobby all stood back a little as Sam typed on the computer in the police station to look at the security footage at the gas station that Rick said he picked up his hitchhiker at. The cops around them were paying them no mind.

"So, demon possession or ghosts? I thought this was a monster thing." Dean said.

"All right, here we go." Sam leaned back triumphantly. "Truck stop, night of the murders."

"That's him." Dean said when Rick climbed out of his truck.

Several minutes later, a figure came walking onto the screen. Elena paled and backed away slightly as if the being would turn and see her looking at the footage. None of them saw her wide-eyed expression. Suddenly, as the figure walked to climb into the cab of the truck, she turned and looked directly at the camera and her face changed to a grotesque look.

"Freakish nightmare. What the hell is that?" Dean said, grimacing.

"Bobby?" he and Dean looked at him.

"I've never seen that in my life." he looked over at Elena and saw her panicked expression.

"Elena?" he said worredly.

"It's… it's her." she said simply.

Dean got what she meant immediately while Sam and Bobby were a little slower at understanding. He walked past the desk and shook his head. Bobby and Sam finally caught on, realizing that it was the Mother.

"Um... okay, well, if that is big mama… whatever she is, we got zero on ganking her. So what are we gonna do if we run into her? Throw salt and hope?" Dean asked.

"No, we're gonna turn tail and run, because we're in over our heads." Bobby corrected him.

"He's right. We don't have a shot if we face her. I'm not even strong enough to stand against her and she has already shown that she can influence me to turn against you." Elena said.

"Well we still better get some real info on this bitch before we do run into her." Dean said.

Suddenly activity moved into place around them. They looked to see officers running every which way.

"Hey, let's go." one officer called as he ran towards the door.

"What's the ruckus?" Bobby asked, stopping him.

"A guy just went postal down at the Cannery." He answered, turning to hurry out of the station.

"Okay, I'll go." the older hunter said, turning to face them. "You finish here."

* * *

Bobby pulled out his badge as he walked up to the Cannery. Several gurneys with bleeding victims were wheeled past him.

"FBI. Willis. How many in there?" he asked the officer.

"Six dead." The man answered.

"What happened?" he questioned as he walked towards the building in step with the policeman.

"Apparently, a guy walks in, pulls a hunting rifle, just opens fire. Captain! This is Agent…"

"What? There a fed convention in town or something?" the police captain interrupted.

"I beg your pardon." Bobby said, not seeing the other man until he stepped out from behind the captain.

"Agent Willis? Am I right?" Rufus asked, walking up to him with a clueless look.

"Agent. I wasn't expecting you... yet." Bobby said, narrowing his eyes at the other hunter.

"Well, apparently, you didn't get the call." Rufus turned to look at the officers. "Gentlemen, can you excuse us?"

"What in the high holy are you doing here, Rufus?" Bobby asked as they walked off.

"Same as you… tracking thirty-one flavours of crazy, which led us both smack into the middle of this." the other man explained.

"Right. Huh. Can we talk to the perp?" Bobby questioned as they walked to his car.

"Well, we can give it a shot. I don't know if he's gonna talk back to us, though. Cops put eight bullets in him. So..."

"So what?" he questioned.

"So are we partnering on this or not? Come on, man. It's not rocket surgery. We're here. Let's do this. Just like old times."

Bobby looked around before looking back at Rufus.

"Long as I get to drive." He said.

The other hunter let out a laugh.

"Hell no."

* * *

"We need to talk about this." Elena said as she changed in the bathroom.

The door was open but she trusted the boys to give her privacy.

"About what?" Dean asked.

"If this is really the Mother and she shows up, I can't be trusted to keep my mind around her. She already got into it once and there's nothing to keep her from doing it again. I don't have any protection against her. If she comes, I can't be there or I'll easily turn against you." she said.

"You really think she'll go after you again?" he asked.

She poked her head out as she fixed her hair that was pulled up into a bun to keep it out of the way.

"Do you really think she's done messing with me?" she countered.

Dean sighed.

"Well, we'll see how it goes, okay?" he said.

"Fine." Elena replied.

Sam didn't say a word, just watching them. He could see how much this whole thing was weighing down on them both even if they wouldn't admit it. It made him want to kill this thing because he wanted them to be happy just like he had when he went into the pit. He would give anything to give them that because he was certain that his big brother and his sister-like figure deserved to be happy.

* * *

Rufus and Bobby stared down at the body of the suspect, neither of them touching it.

"So, do you think the mother of whatever the hell is wrapped up in this, Bobby?" Rufus asked.

"Looks like." Bobby confirmed.

"These are just guys going berserk, Bobby. How is that a monster thing?" the other hunter said.

"I don't know. That's why we're hacking him open." Bobby bent down and saw something strange in the man's ear. "Hand me one of those swab things over there."

He took it from Rufus' hand and Bobby slid it in, swirling it around to make sure that he got a good amount of the substance on it. When he pulled it out, he held it up so that both he and Rufus could examine the black-grey goo.

"What have you got? That ecto?" Rufus asked.

He took the swab and inspected it, shaking his head.

"That's not ecto." He held it to his nose and sniffed it, flinching away at the rancid smell. "What the hell is that?"

"It's something new." Bobby said, furrowing his brow at the man.

"New? No such thing as new, Bobby." Rufus said.

"Well, it's something. Those guys who snapped, one thing they had in common… they both worked at that Cannery joint."

* * *

Elena, Dean, and Sam all glanced back when they saw the car pulling up. They were pulling out weapons and making sure that everything was in order before they went into the Cannery. They watched as Bobby and Rufus climbed out of the car, all three of them surprised to see the latter.

"I don't even know why you have a driver's licence." Rufus said, shaking his head.

Elena smirked, always loving it when Rufus and Bobby were together. It was like watching Grumpy Old Men play out in front of her.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in." Dean said as they turned around.

"It really is good to see you, Rufus." Sam greeted him, reaching out to shake his hand.

Rufus grinned at them and shook Dean's neck.

"I can believe it. It must get old dealing with this miserable cuss here all by yourself." He said.

"Is it that obvious?" Sam laughed, looking at Bobby.

"Hi Rufus." Elena leaned forward and hugged him, kissing his cheek. "Good to see you."

She smiled brightly at the older hunter.

"Why don't you four get a room?" Bobby grumbled.

"All right, we all pack a snack?" Dean asked as he closed the trunk.

"Yeah." Sam said as they all held up their handguns and their flashlights.

Elena's knife was in an ankle holster since she was wearing a dress. Dean and Sam didn't hesitate to make fun of her when she wore a dress on a hunt but she challenged them to find something more comfortable and easy to move in. It usually shut them up.

"Let's see what we can see." Dean said as they walked towards the large building.

They walked in with Elena and Dean walking in front and the others trailing them. At first, the male hunters were hesitant to let Elena walk protectively in front of them but they were used to letting her go now because Elena would argue with them until they did it anyways and she could heal herself almost instantly if she got injured, unlike them. They climbed into an elevator and went down to the floor below where most of the factory actually was. When they climbed out, they turned the corner with their guns ready at their sides to be utilized. They heard a noise and all of them stopped short. When they saw someone coming towards the door, they all raised their guns. It opened to reveal a brunette female and she stopped short when she saw them with a gasp. They all squinted at her, Elena, Dean, and Sam recognizing her.

"Gwen?" Dean questioned.

"Dean." She breathed, her hand over her heart as she looked at the guns all pointed at her.

They lowered them and stared at her. Elena and Dean were the first ones to see the movement in the room behind her where she'd come from. They saw Samuel through the window as he stopped short, reaching for his gun when he saw them. Dean slammed through the doors without a second though, raising his gun. Elena was on his heels and Sam chased behind them with Bobby, Rufus, and Gwen bringing up the rear.

"Welcome to next time." Dean growled.

Sam ran forward and lowered his arm.

"No, no, no, no! Hold on!" he said desperately.

"I said I'd kill him!" Dean snapped, struggling against his brother.

Samuel stood perfectly still, not bothering to move.

"Elena help please." Sam said, looking at her pleadingly.

"Why? He deserves it." she said in a furious voice, glaring at him.

"Look, just a second." Sam said, getting between them and Samuel.

"I take it you know each other." Rufus said, looking between all of them.

"He's our grandfather." Dean spat as if the words were poison on his tongue.

"Oh. Somebody needs a hug." Rufus said, raising his eyebrow at all of them.

"Why are you here?" Bobby asked Samuel.

"We're working. You?" Samuel answered as if there wasn't two people in the room who would love nothing more than to kill him bloody.

"None of your damn business!" Dean yelled.

"Elena, take Dean for a walk." Bobby said.

"No." she growled, standing her ground.

"Sam?" Bobby said without hesitation.

He knew that Elena had more control over her actions than Dean did at the moment.

"You got to be kidding me." Dean said.

Sam grabbed his arm and dragged him out much to Dean's annoyance.

"Look, Dean, it's fine." He said, as he yanked him towards the door.

"How?" Dean shot back.

They walked through the door and Dean threw himself away from Sam.

"What is wrong with you?" he demanded of his younger brother.

"Look, maybe he knows something." Sam suggested.

"You don't remember what he did. I do." Dean snapped angrily.

"I know. I'm not saying don't. I'm saying not yet." He said, trying to talk some sense into Dean for the moment.

He took a breath and nodded, turning to walk it off.

Sam re-entered the room and stood by Elena, who was itching to raise her gun and put a bullet in Samuel's head. Luckily, she had the self-control to restrain herself.

"So... you're Samuel." Bobby said with an unimpressed tone, looking the other man up and down.

"You must be the guy pretending to be their father." Samuel shot back.

Elena felt a pulse of anger go through her and she shook her head.

"Well, somebody ought to." Bobby replied without hesitation.

Samuel looked away from him, studying the younger Winchester.

"Sam. You're looking well." he said.

"Save the small talk, all right?" he snapped.

Samuel squinted at him, sensing something right away.

"You seem different." He said.

"I got my soul back. No thanks to you, I hear." Sam shot back, glaring at him.

"You hear? You don't remember." Samuel's eyes flickered to Elena and found that her gaze was just as feriocious as his grandson's, if not more.

"I remember enough." Sam replied.

"I, uh, really hate to break up this little circle of love, but why don't we talk shop, huh? How about you tell us what it is you're hunting?" Rufus asked.

"A creature from Purgatory. She calls herself Eve." Samuel explained.

"Eve?" Sam asked.

"Yep. They call her Mother. She was here about 10,000 years ago. Every freak that walks the face of the earth can be traced back to her. And she's back."

"How the hell do you know all that?" Bobby asked.

"You don't know half the things that I know, kid. Hell, until recently, you didn't even know about us." Samuel replied.

"I now know that you'd throw your own kin to hungry ghouls. I think I know enough." Bobby said with an unforgiving look, just as angry at him as the rest of them.

"You what?" Gwen demanded, obviously clueless about the situation.

"Dean lied to the man." Samuel tried to defend himself.

Elena scoffed and shook her head as Sam stared at him incredulously.

"How about you ask Dean?" Bobby suggested.

"Good idea." Gwen turned to leave the room, walking out to where Dean was.

"Dean. Is it true?" she asked.

He turned to face her with a questioning look.

"What?" he asked.

"Did Samuel really try to…"

"Kill me?" Dean interrupted her. "Yes. He didn't even blink. That's the guy you're rolling with."

"He didn't tell me anything about that. I didn't know." Gwen said, looking sympathetic.

"I know." He sighed. "Honestly, there's something I need to tell you."

"What?" she asked, looking at him questioningly.

He drew out his gun and shot her in the heart, watching with no remorse as she fell backwards to the ground.

All of the others turned at the same time with wide eyes at the sound of the gunshot. They ran out to see Gwen lying on the ground with lifeless eyes and Dean was nowhere to be seen.

"See if you can plug that hole up, Bobby." Rufus said, collapsing to his knees next to her body as Sam ran off to find Dean.

"Leave her." Elena said.

They looked up at her incredulously and Samuel shot a glare at her, probably ready to shoot her himself.

"She's already dead. I can bring her back but right now, Dean is missing and whatever took over those other guys is probably in him. He's our priority. Leave her." she repeated.

Bobby glanced up at Samuel as Rufus stood.

"I'm sorry... if you care." He said despite the fact that he knew that Elena would bring her back.

With any other person, he knew that it must be rough to watch a grandchild die. But this was Samuel so he wasn't sure if the man even had emotions.

"Screw you. I care." Samuel snapped.

Sam ran back up.

"Is she, uh..." he said, glancing down at her.

"I'll take care of her later. Where's Dean?" Elena asked, looking up into his eyes.

"I couldn't find him. Whatever got into those guys must have got into Dean." He said.

"Rufus, help Samuel move her somewhere. Sam, Elena and I will lock down here. We're gonna want to find Dean before he finds us." Bobby said.

Sam and Elena both turned to look at Samuel, who was staring down at Gwen's body.

"We're gonna find him alive, Samuel, or I'm gonna put a bullet into your head." Sam threatened.

* * *

Once they finished locking everything up, Elena, Sam, and Bobby joined in on the search for Dean. She was walking with Sam as they looked around. Elena pulled out her phone slowly and dialed Dean's number, holding it to her ear. They heard his phone ringing and they both ran towards the sound.

"Dean, put that damn thing down." Rufus said as they pointed their gun at each other.

Samuel ran up, pointing his gun at Dean as well. He swiveled between them, alternating between aiming his gun at both of them.

"Dean, put it down." Rufus repeated.

"You're the least of my worries right now, Rufus." Dean snapped, sounding panicked.

Sam and Elena ran up at the same time as Bobby.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey." Sam said, trying to de-escalate the situation.

"Okay, both of you." Bobby said, facing Rufus and Samuel.

"Both of us, my ass." Rufus growled.

"I'm not in the mood. I just had a 12-inch... herpe crawl out of my ear." Dean growled out, looking thoroughly traumatized.

"What?" Sam said, staring at him.

"You heard me. I just woke up on the ground, just in time to see this… this... worm thing sliding out of my freaking ear and into that vent. So you tell me what the hell's going on!" he yelled.

"You killed Gwen. That's what's going on." Samuel said.

Dean faltered in his anger and he looked sad for a moment.

"We were just talking out in the hallway. That's the last thing I remember. That thing must have jumped me." he murmured.

"So, we're talking about, like, a monster that gets in you?" Bobby questioned.

"It's like a Khan worm on steroids." Dean explained.

"You mean like a parasite, something that took over your body." Sam confirmed.

Samuel, Rufus, and Bobby hadn't lowered their weapons just in case the thing was still in Dean.

"Worm crawls in you, worm crawls out." Dean said.

"Monster possession? That's novel." Rufus said.

"Or that thing's still in you, and we can't trust a word that you're saying." Samuel said accusingly, glaring at Dean.

"It's not!" Dean shouted.

"Check your ear." Bobby said.

Dean stared at him with confusion.

"What do you mean, check my ear? Check my ear for what?"

Rufus reached out and stuck his finger in Dean's ear.

"Hey! What? Why don't you buy me a drink first?" he snapped, swatting Rufus' hand away as he put his own finger in his ear.

"Second date. Oh, yeah, we're goo positive." Rufus confirmed, looking at his finger.

"What does that mean? What does that mean?" Dean demanded.

"That means it was in you, all right." he replied.

"Or it still is." Samuel repeated again.

"It's not in me!" Dean growled, glaring at him as Bobby walked off, coming back with a burlap sack.

"Okay. Everybody, give up your guns." He said.

"What?" Samuel demanded.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, think about this for a second, Bobby." Rufus said with a hesitant look.

"I'm thinking we don't know who is and who ain't got the damn Khan worm up inside his melon." Bobby said.

"It's not in me!" Dean yelled again, trying to drive the point home.

"I didn't say it was. Point is we don't know who it is. It could be any one of us. So the best we can do... is to make it that much harder for that thing to blow our fool heads off." he said, holding the sack open.

He dropped his gun inside and the rest of them followed suit, all except for Samuel.

"Are you waiting for a handwritten invite, Campbell?"

Samuel slowly and reluctantly gave up his gun.

"Dean…" Elena said.

He turned to look at her.

"This is exactly what I was talking about. I can't be here." She said softly.

"What… you can't leave! We need you!" he said, grabbing her hand.

"Dean, you and I both know that I don't need a gun to kill any of you." she said.

Samuel scoffed and she turned to glare at him.

"Do you have something to say?" she asked, stepping forward.

Dean's hand held her back.

"Just that you've got a lot of faith in your ability to take on four other experienced hunters." He said, shrugging.

Her hand flew out before she could help it and he flew across the room, slamming into the wall and freezing there.

"Elena!" Sam yelled with panic as they heard Samuel's head crack against the concrete wall.

He was going to have a helluva headache, they all knew that. Elena shrugged Dean off and stalked towards Samuel, glaring at him as she got right in his face.

"Tell me that I can't kill you with a snap of my fingers again, Samuel. I dare you." she growled.

"Elena let him go." Dean said.

She turned to stare at him.

"Why? You want this. You want him dead." She said.

She whipped her head back to Samuel.

"You gave Elijah, Rebekah and Finn over to Crowley, didn't you? You gave my friends over to be tortured." She said, her hands fisting in his shirt.

He didn't say anything, glaring back at her.

"We need him… for now." Dean sighed, putting his hand on her arm.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head, letting him go. Samuel slumped to the ground and glared at her but didn't say a word.

"You can't go anywhere. We need you. We'll make sure that this thing doesn't get anywhere near you." Dean assured her, turning her to face him.

"You can't be certain of that." she warned him.

"Elena, we need you." he said again.

She sighed, shaking her head.

"Don't say I didn't warn you. If this thing gets in me, you find a way to kill me right away and find a way to kill this thing. Then call Gabriel to bring me back and anyone else I might kill." She warned him.

"Will do." He nodded.

They walked into a back room and locked the guns up in a locker with a padlock on it.

"Okay. We need some time to breathe, make a plan." Bobby said, turning towards them.

"A plan? Based on?" Samuel said in a skeptical tone.

"I'm gonna make a few phone calls, see if anybody ever heard of anything like this." he replied.

"Hmm. Ditto. Got a few trees I can shake." Rufus agreed.

* * *

They were all spread throughout the room. Bobby and Rufus were pacing as they talked on the phone. Samuel was sitting at one table alone. Sam, Elena and Dean were at the other table. Dean was leaning back in his chair with his legs propped up on the desk crossed at the ankles, drumming his fingers on the table with an unending glare aimed at Samuel. If Elena weren't so pissed herself at the man, she would find his demeanor extremely sexy. She was cross-legged on her own chair with her elbow on the table and her head cradled in her hand. Sam was sitting with his back to Samuel staring at the doors just past Dean.

"Oh, balls, Allard. No, I told you that." Bobby said.

He sighed and snapped his phone closed.

"Damn it."

Samuel finally had enough of Dean glaring at him, moving to get up. Sam sensed it and stood, turning to block his path.

"Relax. Bathroom break. So unless you want to hold it for me..."

They watched as Samuel left the room. Dean pulled his feet off of the table, glancing first at Sam and then Elena with a clear message in his eyes. Elena stood along with him following him out of the room with Sam by her side.

"Well, I got a dump truck full of bubkes." Bobby said as Rufus snapped his phone shut.

"Nothing here, either. You call Willie?" he asked, walking towards Bobby.

"Of course. You think I'm an idjit?" Bobby said, sitting in a chair.

"How about Raj?" Rufus asked, leaning against one of the tables.

"Wouldn't talk to me."

"Yeah, me neither." He nodded, smirking.

"Okay, plan B. Let's just go and grab the thing." Bobby suggested, facing the other hunter.

"And then what, exactly?" Rufus asked.

"Well, we sit on our thumbs, or we go in guns blazing." He shrugged.

"Like Omaha?" Rufus asked with a raised eyebrow.

Bobby stared at him for a moment with a guilty look on his face.

"You know what? Screw you for bringing up Omaha. That's just low." He snapped.

* * *

Elena and Dean were waiting just around the corner as Samuel walked out of the bathroom. He turned to walk the other way and found Sam blocking his path. He sighed and turned to Dean.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm just wondering how you sleep at night." Dean said.

"Like a baby. Thanks for asking." Samuel said with a smirk.

"You fed us to Crowley!" Dean snapped.

"True, but what am I gonna do about it now? Do I blame you for wanting to kill me? Of course not, Dean. What I did was..." he shook his head, cutting off. "… but I'm not apologizing. I did what I did. I don't cry over spilled blood."

"So you really can just go on, like..." Sam said.

"Just because you're Dr. Jekyll at the moment doesn't mean you can get all high and mighty. Don't forget, we spent a year together." Samuel said, turning with an accusing glare at Sam.

"Yeah, we did. We're blood. And you still sold me out." Sam snapped.

"Trust me, what I did pales in comparison to what you did, and on more than one occasion." Sameul scoffed at him.

"All right, tell me what I did." the younger Winchester said.

"No. Sam, come on." Dean moved to stand between him and Samuel.

"The only reason you're alive right now is because we're working a job. The minute we kill this thing... you're next."

"Okay, then. We'll just see." Samuel said, turning away.

Dean and Elena saw the black goo too late. Samuel pulled out a gun and shot Elena before they could react. The bullet pierced her shoulder before she could move and she cried out, falling against the lockers beside her. Dean launched forward, grabbing his arm and slamming it into the lockers. He shoved Dean and Sam both away, running off.

"Elena." Dean said, watching as she pulled her jacket to the side, looking at the wound.

"I'm fine. Go get him." she said, hovering her hand over the wound and crying out as she pulled the bullet out with her mind.

Sam and Dean ran after him, leaving her to heal herself. Once she did, she closed her eyes and thought about Samuel, hoping that it worked and that she would be able to find him as she disappeared.

"I heard a shot." Bobby said as Dean and Sam ran up to them.

"Samuel!" Dean yelled as an explanation as they ran off to look for him.

"I'm gonna be needing my gun back now, Bobby." Rufus said.

"You think?" Bobby shot back as they ran back into the room to grab the guns out of the locker.

"Hey, don't feel bad. You know, it was a good plan, except for the part where a monster would definitely, definitely not give up all his weapons." Rufus said.

"Shut up." Bobby snapped.

* * *

Elena shoved Samuel against the wall, glaring at him.

"What are you, huh? Parasite?" she demanded.

He stared at her, tilting his head to the side.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to go after monsters alone?" he asked. "Oh yes, your mother is dead. Both of them."

He smirked at her as she wrapped her hand around his neck.

"Tell me what you want." She snapped.

"I want a new one. This one is old and used up. You're pretty and fresh." The thing said, smiling at her.

Elena watched with horror as she heard a squelching noise and a disgusting creature wormed its way out of Samuel's ear.

* * *

"We lost him." Dean said as they walked into the room with Bobby and Rufus. "Where's Elena?"

He glanced around.

"She might still be out looking for Samuel. She'll catch up with us." Bobby said.

Dean nodded in agreement.

"So, what's the plan?" Sam asked.

"We stick together. We got to keep track of this thing, who it's in." Dean said simply.

They walked around searching the Cannery. Dean wasn't going to admit it but they knew that he was growing more stressed the longer they went without seeing Elena. He was walking in front of the group with his gun raised. Suddenly Sam fisted his hand in his jacket and yanked him back. Dean, Bobby, and Rufus all raised their guns in panic, pointing them at him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Hold on. Look."

He turned to shine his light on the almost invisible trip wire that was there.

"Booby trap." Dean realized.

"I'll be damned." Bobby said.

They stepped over the trap carefully and continued down the hallway. Unbenownst to them, someone was waiting on them. When Sam walked through the doorway into the next, rather large room, her hand flicked out and the sliding door slammed shut, separating him from the group and locking it. She stepped back into the shadows, smirking as she disappeared.

"Hey! Hey!" Dean yelled, slamming his fist down on the door.

"Whoa! Dean!" Sam exclaimed, attempting to pull it open.

"Sam! Damn it. Son of a bitch." Dean growled.

"Dean?" Sam said to get his attention.

"Sam!"

"I'm gonna go around, okay?" he said.

"All right. Watch yourself." Dean called back.

"Yeah." Sam said, turning to walk off as he drew his gun out.

As he walked around the corner, he spotted Samuel standing by a table. He raised his gun and flashlight, pointing at him.

"Don't move." he said.

The man turned anyways, raising his hands.

"Sam." he said with a slight smile.

"Put your gun down." Sam said, glaring at him.

"What you gonna do, son? You're not gonna shoot me. You got your soul back. You gonna shoot your own family?" Samuel asked.

"Yeah, I wouldn't go with the family thing. Try again." He scoffed.

"Mary's still my daughter." He said, taking a step forward.

"I said don't move."

"You're still named after me." Samuel reminded him, moving closer.

"I said don't move!" Sam yelled, stepping backwards.

"Appears to be our moment, Sam. You still want to know about your summer vacation? I'll tell you all about it. You're dying to know, huh?" he said.

"Yeah, I am." Sam said after a moment.

"Well, then, let's just put these down and talk." He offered, stepping forward once more.

"Stop." Sam snapped.

"It's all right, Sam."

A shot rang out and Sam watched with wide eyes as Samuel's body dropped to the ground with a bullet hole in his head. He looked up to see Elena standing there with a gun in her hands. She stared back at him with a slight smirk.

"God that felt good. Like I said, he was old and used up." She said, lowering her arm.

"Elena… what are you…?" Sam said.

She stepped forward and put her hand on his face.

"Forget I was here. You killed Samuel." She said.

He blinked and his face grew blank.

"That's a good boy." She said with a grin before disappearing.

"Sam! Sam." he turned to see Dean, Bobby, and Rufus run in.

"Oh, thank God." Bobby breathed.

They all noticed Samuel's dead body at once.

"Drop the gun, Sam." Bobby said slowly.

He bent down, placing the gun on the ground.

"It's me." he said when he straightened up with a slightly panicked look on his face.

"Okay. That's great, Sam. Just got to cuff you, uh, till we can be sure, okay? You understand, right?" Rufus said, holding up a black zipline cuff.

He turned, putting his hands behind his back.

"It's in him." Sam said, staring down at Samuel.

"Are you sure?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think." He said, vaguely confused.

"You see anything come out of him... after he dropped?" Rufus asked.

They all watched as he shook his head. He was acting too strange for them not to suspect something.

* * *

"Where is she?" Dean grumbled as they dropped Samuel's body on a table back in the room.

"Maybe she decided to zap out to keep us safe like she wanted to." Bobby suggested.

"She wouldn't do that without telling us." Dean argued.

Bobby pulled out a cotton swab and put it in Samuel's ears.

"Tell me you got something." He said.

Bobby pulled it out and inspected it.

"Nothing." He said.

"What? So… so you mean he wasn't a monster when I ganked him?" Sam said with wide eyes.

"One way to find out. Bobby, you got a cranial saw in the car?" Rufus asked, looking at the other hunter.

"Of course." Bobby said, turning towards the door.

"You're not going alone." Dean argued.

"Oh, no, he won't." Rufus said, walking forward as well. "He won't. We will both go grab some tools and see about getting some power in this place. And I want you and you to…"

He cut off, staring between Dean and Sam.

"… okay, I want you and you to watch him and him and… all right, if anything crawls out of anybody, somebody step on it." Rufus finally got out.

"Yeah, don't worry. I'll watch Samuel. Dean will watch me. We'll both keep an eye out for Elena." Sam said softly, sounding like he was having a battle within himself.

"Yeah, right." Rufus nodded as him and Bobby.

"You did the right thing, you know." Dean said

"You mean you think I did, if it's in him and I'm me. This thing's playing three-card monte with us." Sam sighed.

"Well, I'm just gonna assume you're you." Dean said.

"You want to take this off, then?" he said, turning to show his bound hands.

Dean hesitated.

"Not till we get that sucker out of his walnut." He said conditionally.

Sam wasn't surprised, expecting that response and agreeing with it entirely.

"I don't know. I mean, I barely remember him, and what I do remember… it's not good. And what he did to us... but...

"There's a but?" Dean said, raising his eyebrow.

"I mean, I just can't help but think... what would mom say?" Sam said, looking at him.

"You know what I think mom would say? She'd say just 'cause you're blood doesn't make you family. You got to earn that." Dean said.

Sam sighed and nodded, feeling a little bit better.

* * *

"All right, let's get this working." Rufus said as the looked at the breaker box.

He opened it and looked over the wires and switches. He messed with it for a few moments, not paying attention to Bobby when he really should have been. The lights all switched on and he smiled triumphantly. He turned to see Bobby looking slightly dazed.

"You all right?" he asked.

"Yeah, let's get back to the boys." He said.

Dean and Sam turned as they heard them walking down the hall.

"Well...All right. Let's play operation." Rufus said as they walked in.

"You boys want to take a breather?" Bobby asked.

"We're good." Dean said stubbornly.

"We're about to crack open your grandpa's grapefruit. Take a breather." Bobby said, staring between them.

Dean sighed and looked at Sam who nodded. They walked out the doors and stood outside facing away from the doors.

Rufus glanced down at the cranial saw, holding up the frayed cord.

"What is this? Have you been dumpster-diving again?" he asked.

"What? It still works." Bobby defended himself.

"Yeah, right. Hope so." Rufus said doubtfully.

"Listen, Rufus, I've been thinking." Bobby said, turning to the other hunter as he plugged in the cord to the wall.

They were both facing away from Samuel's body, another mistake on both of their parts. Elena didn't waste any time, pressing her hand to his head and doing her work before disappearing again.

"Yeah, well wonders never cease." Rufus said, turning back.

"Yeah, s-shut up a minute. I'm trying to say something." Bobby sighed. "It was my fault… Omaha."

"No. No, it wasn't." Rufus said, shaking his head with a smirk masking his face.

"No, I should… I should have listened to you." he said.

"Well, hey, that's categorical, Bobby." Rufus replied, staring down at the saw.

"I… l-let me just get this out." Bobby said pleadingly.

"Bobby, we've had this conversation already, okay?" he snapped, finally losing it.

"No, we haven't. I never said I'm sorry, Rufus. I… you lost her because of me, and I…"

"Bobby, I said we've had this conversation already." He cut him off. "And you could blabber all day... and it wouldn't change a thing, Bobby. I will never forgive you for what happened. You got that? Never. So change the subject, Bob."

Bobby quieted and Rufus nodded, turning on the saw and bringing it close to Samuel's head. Suddenly his eyes popped open and he threw Rufus and Bobby off of him.

"Dean." Sam said, getting his attention as he paced.

Dean freed Sam's hands with his knife as Samuel flipped the table over, breaking off one of the legs and shoving it through the handles of the door. Bobby and Rufus fought him as Dean and Sam synchronized their kicks in order to get the door open.

"Elena, we could really use you." Dean grunted as he watched Samuel knock Rufus out.

Bobby suddenly threw him against one of the pillars and was thrown off as the plug that Samuel fell against shorted out and began electrocuting him. Dean and Sam watched with horror as a worm crawled out of Samuel's ear and slithered away. They kicked the door open one last time and ran in.

"Bobby, you okay?" Sam knelt at his side and shook him awake.

"Rufus. Rufus. Rufus. Hey, you all right? Wake up."

Bobby's limbs flailed out as he woke up.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey. It's all right. I got you. Come on." Sam helped him up.

"Come on." Dean did the same for Rufus.

"This can't be my afterlife cause the three of you are here. What happened?" Rufus asked.

"Well, when we left, he was dead on the table." Sam said.

"Yeah, till he wasn't." Bobby grumbled, rubbing his head.

They all looked down at where Samuel was crumpled against the pillar.

"So how did he get double dead?" Rufus asked.

"Bobby threw him against that. I guess it was a live wire. It shorted, and he went ape. Then that thing crawled out of his ear." Dean said, grimacing.

"At least we know what tickles it. Electricity." Bobby breathed.

"Yeah. Now the question is, where'd it go? You see?" Sam asked, looking at Dean.

"No." Dean said, shaking his head.

"You two were down for the count." Sam said, looking around.

"Yeah. Well, either it bailed or it's in either one of you." Dean said, pointing at Bobby and Rufus.

"Or, it's in one of you." Rufus countered.

"No, we were awake." Dean denied his statement.

"Did you have eyes on each other?" he said.

"Yes." Dean confirmed.

"100% of the time?"

Both of them hesitated.

"Define 100." Dean said.

"Like I said." Rufus nodded.

"All right, how about, uh, check for goo, right?" Sam said,

They all reached up and stuck their fingers in their ears, pulling them out to show that they were clean.

"Nothing." Sam said as they inspected each other's fingers.

"It might just be gone." Bobby suggested.

"No. It might have wised up and covered its trail." Dean said.

"All right, let's settle this... 100%." Sam said.

"How?" Dean asked.

Moments later, as Sam stripped the cable down to its wires, Dean plugged it into the shorted plug.

"You're live." He said.

Sam walked to a metal chair and held the wire against it. It sparked and fizzled as he did so.

"Okay. All right." he reached down and held the cable against Samuel's neck, electrocuting him.

Samuel didn't move, remaining in his slumped position.

"Okay. I'm not a doctor, but I'm gonna go ahead and call this one." Rufus said.

"Yeah. All right,who wants to go first?" Sam asked.

They all hesitated, looking at one another.

"Come on." Dean said, removing his jacket.

"You sure?" Sam asked.

"Hurry up before I start thinking…"

Sam cut him off by holding the cable to his arm before he could say anything else. Dean growled out in pain, clenching his fist as the spasms went up his arm and through the rest of his body. He finally pulled away and Dean inhaled sharply.

"Son of a..." he shuddered. "Whew. Awesome. Here, you want me to…"

Sam didn't give him a chance to take it, pressing it to his own arm and gritting his teeth as a shout of pain escaped his lips. When he was done, Dean gestured for him to hand it over.

"Let's go." he said.

"Yep." Sam breathed, relinquishing the cable.

Dean approached Rufus with it next.

"Uh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Uh, no, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." The older hunter said, shaking his head.

"No passes, Rufus. Come on." Dean said gruffly.

"I got a damn pacemaker." He argued.

"Well, you better hope it's a good one." Dean replied without sympathy.

"Since when do you got a pacemaker?" Bobby asked.

"Since Bush Jr., term one. I'm down three toes, too, F.Y.I. All right, come on. Just make it quick."

Dean reached out and pressed it against his arm.

"God! God! Damn it! Damn it!" he yelled out.

Dean pulled it away and stared at him.

"You okay?" he asked.

"No, I'm not okay. Give me that." Rufus yanked it out of his hands and turned to Bobby.

"Okay. All right, my turn. Well, it ain't inside me, so go right ahead." Bobby said, subtly moving backwards.

It didn't escape the notice of the others.

"All right, then just stand still, Bobby." Rufus said.

"Okay, sure." He said, still shifting away from the other hunter.

"I'll make this quick." Rufus assured him.

"No problem." Bobby said, nodding nervously.

"All right? Let's do this." he held the cable out.

"Okay, uh, just a second, Rufus." He said, holding up his hand.

The other was hidden behind his back.

"Just a second nothing, whatever you are." Rufus growled.

"I'm Bobby." He said defensively, staring at Rufus.

"Bobby, my ass." He growled.

He started towards him and Bobby lashed, stabbing him in the chest with a knife he was hiding.

"Bobby!" Sam yelled in shock.

Rufus fell backwards into his arm as Bobby yanked the knife out. Dean and Sam stared at Bobby with horror as he brandished the knife at them. They laid Rufus on the ground and stared at him.

"Bobby, there are two of us and one of you." Sam warned him as he darted forward and unplugged the cable.

He stared around at them wildly as they circled him, waiting to attack.

"That's enough, Bobby." A voice said behind them.

Sam and Dean turned to see Elena standing in the doorway. She was twirling her dagger in her hand. Bobby suddenly shook his head as if he'd snapped out of a trance. Then he stared down at Rufus with horror.

"What did you make me do?" he demanded, staring up at Elena.

"Wait a minute, it's not in you?" Dean said.

"No… last thing I remember I was watching Rufus turn the lights back on. Then it was all darkness." He said.

"That would be me." Elena said, raising her hand.

They noticed that her voice sounded slightly off, as if something as making it a little bit darker. It was a big difference from her usual tone of voice.

"That's impossible. We watched the thing climb out of Samuel. You weren't in here." Dean said, pointing at her.

"You don't think I can make you see things? Please. You've both let me in your heads before. Well… you've let Elena in your heads. It was easy enough to make you see anything I wanted you to see. It was also easy to make Sam forget that he's not the one who shot his grandfather. That credit goes to me." she said, walking further into the room.

Dean and Sam both pointed their guns at her.

"Relax. I'm not going to attack you… yet."

She slid up onto a table and crossed her legs.

"Get out of her, you little herpe." Dean growled.

Sam looked at him strangely.

"Why do you keep talking about herpes?" he asked.

"What? I don't. Shut up." Sam continued to stare at his older brother. "Shut up!"

They turned back to Elena.

"Get out of her." Dean repeated.

"But I'm comfy. It's nice in here. She's pretty. And you love this girl, don't you? You could kill me and take her with me but haven't you lost enough pals today?" she asked, tilting her head to the side with a smile.

"We'll do what we have to do." Dean said. "But if you're not going anywhere, we got some questions for you." Dean said.

"Ask. I've been waiting for you to ask." She said, smirking at them.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Bobby demanded.

"It means I have nothing to hide." The thing said.

"What are you?" Sam asked.

"You haven't got a name for me yet. I'm new around here. Eve cooked me up herself." Elena said.

"Who is she, this Eve bitch?" Dean growled.

"The mother of all of us, and the end of all of you. By the time she's done, there'll be more creatures than humans. You'll live in pens. We'll serve up your young and call it veal." She said, looking thrilled at the idea.

"And what's your deal in all of this? I mean, how's jumping a few truckers gonna help?" Sam asked.

"You think I'm here to mess with a couple of Cannery workers?" she let out a laugh. "We led you here."

"Why?" Bobby asked.

Her eyes flashed between them.

"She has a message for you." she said.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"You're all gonna die. She's pissed. She's here. And it's gonna be nothing but pain for you from here on in. You took away one of her greatest creations. You and your angels. She's gonna make you pay."

"What do you mean, one of her greatest creations?" Bobby asked.

Elena smiled again, her grin eerie-looking.

"You'll see." She breathed simply.

"You'll tell us now." Dean growled.

"Make me, big boy." She said, winking at him.

Suddenly her smile faded.

"No." she said, shaking her head. "What are you doing?"

She slid off of the table with wide eyes.

"Stop! I said stop!" They scattered away as she walked forward.

It looked like she was doing everything unwillingly.

"Elena? Fight it!" Dean encouraged her, figuring out what was going on.

They watched with wide eyes as she bent down and picked up the cable.

"No! Don't!" the monster pleaded.

She plugged it in and picked it up. Suddenly she wrapped her hand around it and the monster screamed as she electrocuted herself. Her body quivered as she collapsed her knees. Black goo was pouring out of her ears, nose, and mouth as she cried out in pain. Suddenly the thing slithered out of her ear and onto the ground unmoving. She let go of the cable and collapsed the ground. They ran to her and turned her over.

"Elena! Elena!" Dean said, feeling for her pulse.

"She's not breathing. Elena!" Sam said putting his hands on her face.

Suddenly she inhaled sharply, sitting up and looking around. She looked down at her hand, automatically healing the deep burn mark. She looked up at them, her apologies already filling her eyes.

"I'm so sor…"

"It wasn't your fault, Elena. It was mine. You warned us and I should have listened to you." he said.

They helped her up and she looked at Rufus with teary eyes.

"I'm sorry, Bobby. I couldn't help it. I was fighting agaisnt the thing the whole time but it was really strong. It took me that whole time to finally overtake it." she said, a tear sliding down her cheek.

She walked to Rufus slowly, kneeling down at his side.

"Don't." Bobby said.

She looked up at him.

"He would kill us if we brought him back. He's been waiting for death for a long time now. He wanted it but he was too smart to take his own life. You can't… he wanted this." he said.

Elena bit her lip and looked down at him, reaching down to close his eyes.

"I should have left." She sighed.

* * *

"I don't blame you."

Elena, Sam, and Dean turned to look at Gwen, who was looking alive and well.

"For not saving Samuel. What he did was unforgivable. But why did you save me?" she asked.

"You didn't deserve death. We actually like you." Dean said.

"Now you can go do whatever you want." Sam said.

"I don't know what I want, Sam. My entire life has been hunting. Can we really leave this life?" she asked, looking at all of them.

"Try." They all said at once.

She looked taken aback but nodded.

* * *

Dean and Sam stared down at the grave solemnly. Elena walked up with Bobby, holding a bouquet of flowers in her hands as they ignored the rain sprinkling down around them.

"I got to say, I never figured Rufus for the religious type." Dean said as she bent down and laid the flowers against Rufus' headstone.

"Well, he didn't exactly keep kosher. He always used to pull the old 'can't work on the sabbath' card whenever we had to bury a body." Bobby said, chuckling.

They all let out a soft laugh at the thought.

"You know, I-I was just a job. I was Joe mechanic. Then my wife got possessed... went nuts on me. I stabbed her, and that didn't stop her. Next thing I knew, this guy comes busting in, soaks her with holy water, and sends that demon straight to hell so fast. I'd have gone away for killing her. But... Rufus cleaned up everything. Taught me a thing or two about...what's really out there. Pretty soon, we were riding together. Worked like that for years, kind of like you two knuckleheads." Bobby explained.

"So, what happened?" Sam asked as they all looked at him.

"It was Omaha. It was my fault. And he never let it go." he sighed.

"Well, he should have." Dean said.

Bobby looked over at him.

"You don't know what I did, Dean." He said.

"Doesn't matter." Dean said, shaking his head.

"What do you mean, it doesn't…"

"I mean at the end of the day, you two are family." He cut Bobby off. "Life's short, and ours are shorter than most. We're gonna spend it wringing our hands? Something's gonna get us eventually, and when my guts get ripped out, just so you two know, we're good. Blanket apology for all the crap that anybody's done all the way around."

"Some of us pulled a lot of crap, Dean." Sam said.

"Well, clean slate."

Dean looked at Sam first and then Elena, communicating to them that he was speaking specificially to their situations. They both nodded slowly, understanding what he meant.

"Okay." Sam agreed.

They backed away as Bobby took out a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue, Rufus' favorite, and poured it over the grave. Then he took a swig himself as they turned to walk away, leaving him alone for a few minutes.

* * *

Elena looked up from the soulmate folder when Gabriel appeared in the room.

"Do you know what happened?" she asked before he could say a word.

"I do. I'm sorry." He said.

"We need to kill this bitch. I need to find a way… this can't happen again." She said.

"I know." He said, sitting next to her on the couch.

Dean and Sam were out working on the Impala and Bobby was sulking in his bedroom. She wiped a tear from her eye.

"Did you find anything out about the necklace?" she asked.

"Yes. This…" he held it out to her and she lifted it, looking at it. "… belonged to one Tatia Petrova."

Elena stared at him with surprise.

"The originator of the Petrova line." She breathed.

"The one and only." He confirmed.

"What does it have to do with Eve?" Elena asked.

"It has to do with your lineage that goes back much further than Tatia Petrova. I never traced it before. I never had any reason to. It's… ancient." Gabriel said.

"What does that mean?" she questioned.

"To answer that… I'm gonna have to take you somewhere." He said, holding his hand out.

She hesitated, reaching out to take it.

"Where?" she asked, trusting him.

"Heaven." He said simply before they disappeared.

* * *

**Author's Note: There you go, more information on the necklace and, finally, the death of Samuel. Thank God, I hate that guy. I hope you don't mind how I changed the storyline to Elena being the one who had the monster in her for most of the time. Sorry for killing Rufus. It was necessary that he remain dead for now. I don't know if he'll ever come back. Anything can happen. **

**Next chapter is a great one. I'll give you a hint. Celine Dion and Fate. **

**REVIEW PLEASE**


	22. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, RHatch89, RippahGoneWolf, Nyssandria, CherrySin, xxPaige23xx, Dean Winchester Rocks, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, TheElegantFaerie, and DrawingMyHeartOut for reviewing and to everyone else for reading so faithfully! I love you all!**

**To CherrySin, his name is Mark and I completely forgot about him. I'll probably bring them both back eventually.**

**A few things**

**1. I'm going to say this now because I think that a few readers are confused. Elena is still partly human. I have written her that way on purpose. She still has weaknesses. There are monsters that are stronger than her and they can take advantage of her. Eve is 10,000 years old and she can manipulate full angels. Elena is not a full angel. So yes, I write her with weaknesses. Yes, she will continue to have weaknesses because I want it that way. It would not be believable if the heroine of the story were able to defeat each and every thing that she came across without breaking a sweat. I'm sorry if you don't like it. To follow that up, I am writing so many instances of things taking advantage of Elena for a reason. It's a plotline that will lead to something very big in the next part of the story involving the Leviathan. Trust me, please. **

**2. I made this already alternate universe chapter a very alternate universe chapter. There will be explanations and scenes that obviously weren't in the original episode. There is going to be one flashback and it's in italics.**

**3. Elena's storyline is going to be very different. And I mean really very different. For this chapter, since there's so much going on, I'm putting the whole necklace/Eve/Petrova thing on hold. **

**4. Surprisingly enough, Elena isn't going to show up for a while. Just go with it. I won't lead you astray, I promise.**

**5. I took a few liberties with things in this chapter that will extend throughout the story. Most of it is to do with the angels and their traits. **

**6. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

Sam and Dean were standing in the doorway to Bobby's study watching as he read over three different books at one time. He picked up an empty bottle of alcohol and stared at it for a moment before tossing it to the side and pulling another one out, pouring the amber liquid into a glass and drinking it eagerly. Sam glanced over at Dean, who looked back.

"Say something." He whispered.

"No. You." Dean mouthed back.

"No." Sam refused, mouthing as well. "You."

Dean hesitated before lifting his hand in the universal gesture for rock, paper, scissors. Sam sighed and lifted his hand as well. He chose paper and stared at Dean with a furrowed brow when he saw that he had scissors. Dean smirked and looked proud of himself. Sam sighed and looked back over at Bobby, who hadn't been watching this exchange even though it took place right in front of him. Sam cleared his throat.

"Uh..." he began.

"You two just gonna stand there like the ugly girl at the prom, or you gonna pitch in?" The older hunter growled, obviously not clueless about what they were doing. "This so-called Eve, mother of whatever, ain't gonna gank herself. What's wrong with you two?"

He looked up at them with an annoyed look.

"Bobby, you haven't slept in days." Dean sighed.

"I sleep." Bobby said defensively. "What are you, my wife now?"

"I'm just saying that, you know, taking five might be a good thing." Dean shrugged.

"For whom?" he asked.

"Look, Bobby, it was… it was tough for all of us, seeing Rufus go like that."

"You think this…? This ain't about Rufus." He said with a scoff, shaking his head.

"Bobby, he wasn't just a poker buddy." Dean reminded him.

Bobby slammed his glass onto the desk, glaring up at the two boys.

"You know when I knew Rufus was done for? The day I met him. The only question was, who first… him or me? Now, you want to stand there and therapise, or you want to get me some coffee?"

Sam and Dean exchanged a hesitant look.

"Make it Irish." Bobby said before they walked out.

"Well, he's doing fantastic." Dean muttered once they walked into the kitchen.

"Yeah, this isn't about Rufus at all." Sam said, shaking his head as he approached the coffee machine.

"Well, what do you want to do? I mean, we can't just sit here and watch him poop out his liver."

"We could call…"

"We're not calling her." Dean interrupted Sam. "She's busy and you know it. Besides, you don't have to deal with the fallout when we interrupt her. I do."

Sam smirked, knowing that Dean was talking about his bedroom priviledges being withdrawn.

"Well, we could get him out of the house." Sam sighed. "There's a job."

"Really? What've you got?" he asked, sounding interested.

Sam pulled a newspaper clipping out of his jacket and handed it to Dean.

"Look. Chester, Pennsylvania. Three people got kicked off in the last week, all freaky. Last guy got karate-chopped by his garage door. And these are all blood relatives." He explained as he poured the coffee out.

"What are you thinking, family curse?" Dean asked, glancing over the article.

"Could be." Sam shrugged.

"Hey, grumpy…" Dean began to call but turned to see Bobby right behind them. "You, uh…?"

He held up the paper.

"I don't want to do crap. Leave me alone." He grumbled, taking the cup from Sam and turning to walk back into the study. "Just, get out of my house, both of you. You're driving me nuts."

"Bobby." Dean sighed.

"Now!" he snapped over his shoulder. "For the love of Pete."

Sam took the newspaper clipping back from Dean as they both stared regretfully after their father figure.

* * *

Sam glanced over at Dean as they walked to their car. Dean shoved his bag into the back of the classic Mustang before walking to the driver's seat and getting in.

"You know, maybe we should wait 'til she gets back." Sam said as they settled into their seats.

"Dude, she just called from the road, said she'd be here in two shakes. You really want to sit around and smell him stew in his juices?" Dean questioned, looking over at him.

"Yeah, yeah." He sighed, shaking his head. "Drive."

* * *

Bobby was pouring himself another glass of whiskey when shotgun aimed the bottle away from the bottle.

"What the...?"

He looked over to see a brunette staring at him with an unimpressed look.

"Tell me you haven't been drinking this whole time." Ellen said.

"You're worse than the boys." He snapped. "I'm working."

"My God. I'm gone a week, and this place goes completely to hell. What is wrong with you, Bobby Singer?" she demanded, placing the groceries that she picked up on her way into Sioux Falls on the counter.

"Get a pen. It's a long list." He countered.

"You smell like a bar, you know that?" she said, shaking her head.

"You don't exactly smell like a rose yourself." He replied, leaning against the counter next to where she was standing.

"Huh. Yeah, I've been hunting with Jo and Ash. What's your excuse?" Ellen said dryly as she unpacked the food.

"If I need one, I got a good one." Bobby said without a trace of humor.

Ellen sighed and glanced at him.

"I know. And I'm so sorry. He meant a lot to me, too." She reached out and touched his arm. "Go wash up. I'll fix us something."

"Anybody ever tell you you're a pain in the ass?" he grumbled.

She let out a laugh and leaned over, kissing Bobby on the cheek.

"That's why you married me." Ellen shoved him gently towards the door. "Go."

"Don't tell me what to do, Ellen." Bobby said in a grumpy voice.

* * *

Dean and Sam were in the recent victim's garage investigating the scene. They both carefully avoided the bloodstain as the older brother walked around with an EMF meter and the younger looked around with a flashlight.

"Not a bleep." Dean commented as he switched the meter off.

"Well, not a vengeful spirit, then. So what is it?" Sam replied.

He flashed the light onto the ground and tilted his head to the side.

"Huh."

Sam bent down and picked up the gold thread.

"Whatcha got?" Dean glanced at it. "What is that, Christmas tinsel?"

"I don't know."

Sam grabbed a flowerpot and rubbed the thread against it. The material rubbed off and shone on the clay.

"It's gold." He said, looking up at his brother with wide eyes.

"You mean, like, gold gold?" Dean asked, shocked.

"Why would a handyman have gold just lying around in his garage?" Sam asked, looking around.

"I don't know. There is definitely a skeleton in this family's closet. I mean, accidents don't just happen accidentally."

Sam looked up at him, giving him a raised eyebrow.

"You know what I mean."

"All right. How about I'll go check family records, you go with next of kin?" Sam suggested.

"Yeah." Dean agreed.

* * *

Dean was sitting in the closest next of kin's office, a man named Shawn Russo who was a damages lawyer. The man was on the phone with his mother.

"On the courthouse steps… for the deposition. No, I told you, 300 p.m. No, my usual fees. I got to go, Ma."

He hung up and looked up at Dean, who closed the pamphlet he was reading.

"I'm sorry, uh, what department?"

"Genealogy." Dean answered. "From the university. We're doing a study on local families, and, well, the Russos are…"

"Yeah, well, you know what? I got to tell you, I am extremely busy right now, so…" Russo said.

"Yeah, I-I'm sure you've had a rough week. I, uh, read about the recent tragedies. Your cousins, right?" he said, digging for information.

"Yeah. It's a shame. But I'm not that close with my family, so, uh…" he sighed. "… is this gonna take long?"

Dean was already annoyed with the man but he kept it hidden.

"No. Five minutes." He assured the man. "Five minutes. Uh, can you… can you tell me anything, uh, noteworthy about the Russos?"

"Noteworthy? No. I mean, not exactly… average, you know, big, from Italy." Russo shrugged.

"I see. Uh, was anyone ever killed or maimed in a war or, you know, some other violent thing?" Dean questioned.

The lawyer scoffed.

"What do you mean?"

"Like something so dark that it would sully future generations." Dean extrapolated.

"Uh... no." he said suspiciously.

"Good. Good stuff. Anyone own a slave?" Dean asked.

"What?" Russo said, furrowing his brow.

"Routine question. Any ties to the Nazi Party?" he said innocently.

"Excuse me?"

"Did grandma ever piss off a gypsy?"

"Okay, you know what?" Russo stood up with an angry look. "I don't know what kind of study you're doing, but it's over. Right now. So if you don't mind…"

"Okay, I-I'll just cut to the chase here." Dean stood as well. "Um, your life is in danger."

"What? What is that, a threat? Are you threatening me?!" the lawyer demanded.

"No, no, no. No, no. I'm not threatening you." Dean said with his hands up. "I'm just simply saying that if you don't watch your back, you're gonna die."

"Get the hell out of my office!" he yelled.

"Okay." Dean said, realizing that his efforts were futile.

"Now!"

He turned and left with a shake of his head.

* * *

Sam was leaving the city hall when he got the call from Dean.

"Hey." He answered. "Find anything?"

"Uh, one asshat in a shiny suit. You?" Dean replied.

"Not much. Great grandparents born in Calabria. Emigrated 1912. Been here ever since." Sam said.

"What, no severed horse head?" the older brother questioned.

"Ha." Sam chuckled once. "Four generations of picket fence."

"If these people are the Waltons, then why the hell are they dying?" Dean said, frustrated.

"We could call…"

"We're not calling her!" he cut Sam off.

* * *

Elena looked out at the group of people in front of her, all of them laughing and joking with each other as they messed around in the park. She felt a presence behind her and didn't even have to look back at who it was.

"I thought that I would find you here." Castiel said, moving to sit next to her on the bench.

"You know me so well." she said with a slight smile.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

Elena turned and sighed.

"You are always so concerned for me Castiel. Be careful. Your vessel might get worry lines." She said, reaching out to smooth her thumb over his forehead.

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. When they opened, she found herself staring into their deep blue depths.

"You know what Balthazar has done." She said.

"Yes, I do. He is… dramatic." Castiel admitted.

She gave him a knowing look.

"I am not a fool, Cas." She sighed. "You promised no more secrets."

He nodded and gave her his hand, pulling her up to a standing position.

"And I meant it." he said.

Elena smiled again, feeling satisfied with his answer.

"Are you ready to leave?" Cas asked.

Elena threw one last glance at Jeremy and her parents before she nodded and squeezed his hand.

* * *

Sam and Dean were in another scene of a death, looking around the travel office with flashlights. The woman who died was an agent who got her scarf caught in the copy machine. The article of clothing throttled her before she could get herself free.

"Anne Witting." Dean said, looking at the business cards on the desk. "You sure she's not a Russo, a second cousin twice removed or something?"

"No, I checked the records twice. She's not related." Sam confirmed.

"Well, if this isn't a family curse, then what the hell is it?" he said, glancing around the ground for any clues.

"You got me. I got nothing." Sam replied looking through papers on the desk.

"Hold on." Dean bent down and picked up a golden thread from the ground. "Not nothing."

* * *

They were sitting in the motel room. Sam was on the laptop as Dean talked to Ellen on the phone.

"So, we found another piece of this, I don't know, shiny string." He explained.

"Oh, I was afraid of that." she sighed.

"Why? What's up?" Dean questioned.

"Oh, these so-called accidents… we're seeing 'em nationwide. About 75 so far. I got Jo, Ash, and their crew working on a cluster in California."

"Blood relatives?" he asked.

"Some yeah, some no. She's got about what you do… pile of bodies and a whole bunch of gold thread." Ellen explained.

"So what's it mean?" he wondered.

"I don't know. I got Bobby working on it right now." She said.

"How's he doing, by the way?" Dean asked, getting up and walking to the kitchenette to get a cup of coffee.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm kicking his ass back to health and happiness." She said and he could hear the grin in her voice.

"Who asked you to?" he heard the older man in the background. "To hell with you."

"I heard that." Dean said, smirking slightly through his worry for Bobby.

"He'll be okay." Ellen sighed.

"Are you okay?" he asked, worried for her too since she had to deal with Bobby's grumpiness.

"Aw, honey, you're sweet. You know me. I just worry about you boys. Specially since your girl isn't around as much now."

"Yeah, well." Dean didn't want to talk about it, changing the subject. "All right, so, all these corpses, anything relate 'em?"

"Well, actually, I did dig up one thing. I just don't know what to make of it." Ellen said.

"Hit me." he requested.

"Well, it's a weird one, and it was buried pretty deep, but Bobby and me were combing through the family trees on all the victims, and we started seeing, well, the families all came over to America the same year."

He made a sound that informed her that he heard her.

"Yeah. 1912. But here's the real weird part. They all came over on the same boat." Ellen said.

"Really?" he asked, his interest peaked.

"Yep." She confirmed.

"All right, so what's so special about the boat?"

"Nothing. It was a boat. It did what boats do." she said simply.

"What was it called?" Dean asked.

"The Titanic. Did you ever hear of it?" Ellen questioned.

"No." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, me neither. I'll keep digging." She said.

"All right." he replieed before hanging up.

He hesitated for a moment, thinking, before he turned to Sam.

"Does the name Titanic ring a bell?" he asked.

"Titanic? No." Sam said, shaking his head.

Several minutes later, Sam sighed and alerted Dean that he had information.

"The RMS Titanic was the largest passenger steamship in the world when it made its maiden voyage across the North Atlantic in 1912." He quoted from a website.

"So what's the big friggin' deal? It's a ship. It sailed." Dean shrugged, leaning back in his seat.

"Yeah, I don't know. Um..." his eyes scanned the article. "… oh, looks like there was a close call. Ship almost hit an iceberg."

"Almost? So?" Dean said.

"So, uh, looks like the first mate spotted it just in time."

"Good for him. There anything else?"

He really wasn't hearing anything remarkable in this history and he was growing bored with hearing about it.

"Wait a second." Sam leaned forward as if to double check something.

"What?" Dean asked, wondering he found something that was actually interesting.

"Uh, this first mate. Mr I.P. Freeley."

Dean let out a chuckle.

"Well, that's not suspicious. You got a picture of old Freeley?" he asked, walking over to stand at Sam's shoulder.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me." Sam scoffed.

They both peered at the photo.

"Balthazar." They said at the same time.

* * *

"You told me to tell you if I got any wind of a certain Fate's movements. Well I have something." Balthazar said.

Elena bit her lip, glancing over at Cas.

"You can always back out." he said.

"Yeah, and I can have Death on my ass. Always what I wanted." She replied dryly.

"He won't really…" Balthazar began.

"Yeah, he will." She cut him off.

Cas made to say something but Balthazar let out a groan.

"I swear to God, if your boys are doing this again, I'm going to smite them both." he snapped, picking up his glass of alcohol from the table and taking a sip.

They watched with furrowed brows as he disappeared.

* * *

Sam and Dean watched from their place by the table as the angel appeared.

"Boys, boys, boys. Whatever can I do for you?" Balthazar said, walking forward.

"We need to talk." Dean growled, glaring at him.

"Oh, you seem upset, Dean." He said, cocking his head as he stared at him. "Shall I call my sister to relieve that tension of yours?"

"The hell with the boat, Balthazar?" Dean snapped as Sam shuddered at the thought.

"What boat?" the angel asked innocently.

"The Titanic." Dean said.

"Oh. Ja. The Titanic. Yes, well, uh, it was meant to sink, and I saved it." he said simply, shrugging.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Well it was meant to bash into this iceberg thing and plunge into the briny deep with all this hoopla, and I saved it. Anything else I can answer for you?" Balthazar questioned.

"Why?" the younger brother asked.

"Why what?" he said, confused by the answer.

"Why did you un-sink the ship?" Dean demanded.

"Oh, because I hated the movie." He answered.

They both stared at him with confusion, realizing this conversation going to weird places.

"What movie?" Dean said.

Balthazar let out a laugh.

"Exactly!"

"Wait, so you saved a cruise liner because…"

"Because that God-awful Celine Dion song made me want to smite myself." Balthazar said, cutting Sam off.

"Who's Celine Dion?" the younger Winchester asked.

"Oh, she's a destitute lounge singer somewhere in Quebec, and let's keep it that way, please." Balthazar requested with a roll of his eyes.

"Okay, I didn't think that was possible. I thought you couldn't change history." Sam said.

"Oh, haven't you noticed? There's no more rules, boys." He said with a grin.

Sam scoffed, shaking his head.

"Wow. The nerve on you. So you just, what, un-sunk a giant boat?"

"Oh come on. I saved people. I thought you loved that kind of thing." Balthazar said defensively.

"Yeah, but now those people and their kids and their kids' kids, they must have interacted with… with so many other people, changed so much crap. You totally Butterfly-Effected history!"

"Dude. Dude." Dean shook his head at his younger brother. "Rule one, no Kutcher references."

"Ah, yes. Unfortunately, there's still an Ashton Kutcher. And you still averted the Apocalypse, and there are still Archangels. It's just the small details that are different, like you don't drive an Impala."

They both looked at the angel with confused looks. "Yes, yes. What's an Impala? Trust me, it's not important. And, of course, Ellen and Bobby are married. Ash is alive."

"Ellen and Bobby? Ash? What?" Dean said.

"Yes, Ellen and Bobby aren't married in that other world. And Ash is dead, died in a bloody explosion. You see, I save a boat, one thing leads to another, which leads to another thousand things, and yada, yada, yada."

Balthazar took a long drink.

"Anyway, let's agree I did a good thing. One less Billy Zane movie and everything is right in the world. Your Mr. Singer has a wife."

"But now somebody is killing the descendants of the survivors." Sam said.

"And?" Balthazar asked, wondering why he should care.

"And that's maybe like 50,000 people." Sam explained.

"And?" he repeated.

"And we need to save as many as we can, but we need to know who's after 'em." Dean snapped, his patience running short.

"Oh, uh, sorry, uh. You have me confused with the other angel… you know, the one in the trenchcoat who's in love with you." Balthazar said, staring at Dean, who scoffed. "I... don't care."

The angel took another drink before nodding at them.

"Goodbye, boys." He said before vanishing.

"Whoa, whoa, wait, wait, wait, wait." Dean glanced around to see that he was gone. "Son of a bitch!"

* * *

"So, Balthazar un-sank a boat, and now we got a boatload of people who should never have been born." Bobby said over the speakerphone as they sat at the table.

"Yeah. Like 50,000." Sam answered.

"Makes sense." The older hunter said.

"How does any of this make sense?" the younger Winchester asked.

"Because I got an idea who we're up against." Bobby said.

"What?" Dean questioned.

"Fate." He said.

"You mean…?"

"I mean Fate, like the Fates. Or one of 'em, at least." Bobby said.

"You mean like Greek mythology? Like the sisters?" Sam asked.

"Bingo." He answered.

"Nerd." Dean scoffed, making Sam roll his eyes.

"These ladies are responsible for how you go down, literally. So if you get creamed by a garage door or crunched by a copy machine, they're the ones who hammer out the details of how you die. Spin out your fate on a piece of pure gold." Bobby explained.

"Gold thread." Sam realized.

"And then one of 'em writes it all down in her Day Runner of Death. It's high-level stuff. Anyway… fits. Now we know what Balthazar did. It seems to me that maybe Fate is just trying to clean up the mess." He said.

"So, how do we stop it?" Sam asked.

"How do we stop Fate? Good question." Bobby said, another phrase for, 'I have no idea'.

"Well, there's got to be a way." Dean said, certain that there was a way to kill everything.

"Or there ain't. I mean, this is Fate we're talking about here. You know, the easiest way would be to get that angel to re-sink the boat."

"No. No way. Forget it." Dean said, shaking his head stubbornly.

"Big difference between dying awful and never being born, Dean." Bobby reminded him.

"We are not sinking the boat, Bobby. Okay? Don't even think about it." he snapped.

"Well, okay. What's got your panties in a clench?" Bobby questioned suspiciously.

"Nothing." Dean sighed.

"Try that again?" Bobby asked doubtfully.

"It - look, it - it - it doesn't even really matter, but..." Dean stammered.

"But?" the older man pushed him.

"Apparently, a crapload of dominoes get tipped over if the Titanic goes down. And, uh, bottom line… you and Ellen never get together. You're never married." Dean said.

There were a few moments of silence.

"Okay, you two. Listen up. You make sure... keep those angels from sinking that boat. Do you understand me?" he said gruffly.

"Yeah, Bobby, of course." Sam agreed.

Bobby hung up before anymore words were exchanged.

"Oh, he's bad enough with her. Think how he'd be if they weren't together." Dean said, shaking his head.

"Yeah." Sam sighed. "So, what do we do? I mean, how do we save 50,000 people?"

"I got no freaking clue." Dean grumbled.

"Yeah. We don't even know who they are." Sam said, just as stumped.

Dean glanced around and caught sight of something.

"Well, we know one."

He picked up Shawn Russo's pamphlet and showed it to Sam.

* * *

Dean spotted the lawyer as he exited his office, shaking hands with a client before walking off and answering the phone.

"That's him. Let's go." he said.

They exited the Mustang and hurried after him.

"Mr. Russo!" Dean called as they chased him down.

"I don't care. Send him a fruitcake." Russo said on the phone.

"Shawn!" he yelled

"Who's the judge?" the lawyer asked.

"Russo!"

"All right, send him a nice bottle of champagne. But nothing more than 30…" Russo said, approaching the street to cross it.

"Shawn!"

"… ah, no. 20 bucks. Believe me, this guy… he owes me."

"Russo, stop!" Dean shouted as him and Sam hurried towards him.

The man finally heard him and turned in the middle of the street to face him. A car squealed to a stop and Russo jumpd out of the way, dropping everything that he was holding. Dean hurried to pick everything up and Sam helped the lawyer up as people around them watching worredly.

"Get off of me." Russo snapped, jerking away from Sam. "And you…"

He snatched his phone out of Dean's hands with a glare.

"I told you to leave me alone, didn't I?"

"Look, we're just trying to help you out, okay?" Dean said desperately.

"Help me?! You almost killed me, you lunatic. Unbelievable." Russo turned to walk across another street.

"Russo! Hey!" Dean yelled.

He turned in the middle of the street, pointing at them.

"Just be glad I'm not suing you're a…"

He was cut off by a bus hitting him out of nowhere, spraying blood all over the asphalt. Dean and Sam looked on with shocked and pained expressions.

"You've got to be kidding me." Dean said as they walked into the road.

He glanced around and then noticed the back of the bus. He smirked slightly and nudged his brother.

"Sam, check it out."

"What?" Sam asked, following his finger to where it was pointing.

On the back of the bus, an ad for Russo's firm had a picture of the man on it giving them thumbs up. Sam turned, giving his older brother an exasperated look.

"Too soon?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, Dean. I'm pretty sure six seconds is too soon."

Dean shrugged, deflated but still slightly amused. Sam looked around and noticed a woman standing in a window staring at the scene with a slightly satisfied look. Her eyes met his and she stared at him sternly before turning away from the window.

"Hey. Hey, hey, hey. I think I saw her. Right over there." Sam said, pointing at the now empty window.

"Her? Like Fate her?" Dean asked.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"What'd she look like?" he questioned.

"Kind of like a librarian." Sam described.

Dean grinned.

"Your kind of librarian or my kind of librarian?"

"Well, she was wearing clothes, if that's what you mean." Sam sighed, sick of his brother's fooling around.

"All right." Dean moved to walk across the street to the building.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait, wait, wait." Sam caught his arm, holding him back. "We can't just walk over there."

"We're not on the hit list. We have nothing to do with the boat. Let's go talk to her." Dean shrugged.

"Talk." Sam said doubtfully.

"Yeah, you know." He briefly pulled out his gun before shoving it back in his pants. "Talk. Worth a shot, right?"

They walked into the abandoned restaurant, glancing around to find it empty.

"Hello?" Dean called as he moved his flashlight around the place.

They were unaware that, in the kitchen, the very being that they were looking for was turning on the gas dials of several stoves.

"Hello?" Dean's flashlight suddenly died and he smacked it. "Oh, come on."

"You got a lighter?" Sam questioned.

"Yeah. Okay."

Dean pulled it out of his pocket and tried to flick it as they walked towards the kitchen in the back.

"Oh, come on. It's out of juice or something?" Sam asked, doubting this situation.

"It shouldn't be." Dean replied, confused as they opened the doors to the kitchen.

The lighter sparked and suddenly they saw a huge fireball forming. They felt hands on both of their jackets yanking them backwards as their eyes squeezed shut. When they opened them, they were standing in a large clearing just on the outskirts of a forest. The air was chilly around them and they could see their breath in it.

They whirled around to see two figures standing there.

"Cas! Elena!" Dean realized, his eyes widening.

"Hello, Dean. Sam." Cas said, nodding at them as Elena grinned at them, her hands shoved in her trenchcoat pockets.

"Hey, thanks. Where are we?" Sam asked, glancing around.

"White Russia." Elena answered.

"What?!" Sam said, shocked.

"Are you aware of what your frat bro did?" Dean demanded, staring at them.

"I'm aware. Balthazar can be impetuous." Cas sighed.

"Well, riddle me this… if Fate's going after the boat people, why'd she try to waste me and Sam?" Dean said.

"Well, I imagine she harbors a certain degree of rage toward you." Cas answered.

"What did we do?" Sam asked, confused.

"Nothing of import…" he said sarcastically. "… just the tiny matter of averting the Apocalypse and rendering her obsolete. I think maybe she's a little irritated about that. And then you go and dangle yourselves in front of her..."

"So we've pissed fate off personally." Dean said, looking frustrated.

"If we know her… and we do… she won't stop until you're dead." Elena said softly, trying to calm the situation down.

"Awesome. So what do we do?" Dean asked.

"Kill her." she said.

"Kill fate?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow at them.

"Do you have another suggestion?" Castiel questioned.

"No, I'm… I just mean, uh...Can you even do that?" he asked.

"Balthazar has a weapon that will work against her." Cas nodded.

"Of course he does. Yeah. Boy, that guy's just got it covered, doesn't he? You two need new friends." Dean snapped.

"I'm trying to save the ones I have, Dean. We'll have to draw her out." Cas fired back.

"All right, well, uh, she's gunning for us. She's bound to surface again eventually." Sam said.

"We'll make it easy for her." Elena said unwillingly, not liking this idea but knowing that it was their best.

Dean and Sam looked at them with confusion.

"I think you have an expression for it. Tempting fate." Cas said.

* * *

"Yeah, well, you just be careful." Ellen said as she entered the study.

She hung up as she sat across from Bobby at the desk.

"That was Jo. 30 more dead on the West Coast. What exactly do those boys think they're gonna do?" she asked.

"It's the boys. If anybody can pull this out of their ass, it's those two." Bobby replied, looking up at her.

"Yeah, you ever hear the saying, you can't stop fate? You know, cleanest fix would just be to sink the boat." Ellen said.

"Why would you say that?" Bobby demanded, taking personal offense to that though she didn't know why.

"Well, because, right now they're all dying bloody. It's not the same as never being born." She shrugged, repeating his exact words from earlier.

"You're talking about people… people who are loved… who would be missed." He snapped.

"What the hell is up with you?" she demanded.

"Nothing." He grumbled, looking down.

"Oh, please. You are a neon sign. So, I can beat it out of you, or we could just skip that part… dealer's choice."

A few minutes later, they were staring at each other after his explanation.

"So, we're not together? Ash is dead?" Ellen asked.

"They're not gonna sink the boat. I promise. The boat stays. You don't have to worry." Bobby assured her.

"Well... if it was meant to be, then... I guess whatever happens, happens." She sighed.

"But that's just my point. Nothing's meant to be. Whether we're together is at the whim of some dick angel." Bobby growled.

"Oh, Bobby, relax." She said, taking his hand.

"I can't. We need you. Especially me." he said, sounding miserable.

"I know."

* * *

"You sure this is all right? We shouldn't start tempting fate right away?" Dean asked as they walked into the motel room.

Sam was off in another room.

"I'm positive. She can wait until tomorrow." Elena said confidently, sitting on the bed and sliding her heels off.

Dean walked to the bed and sat there watching her.

"I don't really know how much I want you around until you're here and I realize it." he said.

"Is that your way of telling me that you missed me?" she asked, grinning at him.

He let out a chuckle and reaching out to take her hand.

"I just worry about you. I know that you and Cas aren't the most popular in heaven…"

"We're fine, Dean. I told you that we would come to you if we need you and I was telling the truth." She said.

"Yeah but is that all you're telling?" he said, looking at his hands.

He wasn't a fool, Elena knew that. He had to know that they were hiding things from him and Sam.

"Hey…" she put her hands on his cheeks and forced him to lift his head. "I love you… and you know that I would do anything to be down here with you every second of every day. That's what Cas and I are fighting for. Free will. Remember? That's what you taught us?"

Dean sighed and nodded. Elena leaned in with a smile, capturing his lips with hers.

"Now… are we gonna take advantage of this bed or what?" she said.

He grinned and pulled her back on it as she laughed gleefully.

* * *

Dean was on his side, his elbow keeping him up and his head cradled in his hand. Elena was lying on her stomach with her head facing him. The blankets were pulled up to their waists, covering their unclothedness. His hand was tracing her bare back softly, making her shiver at the sensations.

"Can I see them?" he asked.

She smiled slightly.

"Only if you move." She replied, closing her eyes.

Dean turned over, reaching down to grab his boxers. He pulled them on and then sat on the bed. She looked back at him to see a light in his eyes like an eager little child.

"You treat me like a toy sometimes, I swear." She grumbled, closing her eyes again and breathing deeply as she concentrated.

The sound of wings fluttering filled the air as she shifted towards the middle of the bed. Suddenly her two shining black wings were lying across the white sheets, standing out starkly. Dean stared at them with the same wonderment that he always got when he saw them. His hands reached out hesitantly and smoothed over the silky feathers that he knew could be sharp as razors if necessary.

"Do you know what the other world is like? The one where the Titanic sank?" he asked as his hands drifted to her back where the wings sprouted out of her body.

Elena's eyes snapped open and she hesitated.

"Yes." She answered.

"Are we still together in that world?" he said, both of his hands reaching out to stroke her wings.

"Mm-hm." Elena murmured, her eyes fluttering closed at the amazing sensation of human touch on her wings.

"How is it different? Other than Ellen and Bobby and Ash?" Dean said.

Elena sighed.

"In a lot of ways." she said.

"Like?"

"My parents aren't alive. They died in the car crash instead of me. I was saved… by a vampire no less." She said.

"A vampire. Right." Dean scoffed.

"It's true. I even fell in love with him." she said.

He stared at her with questioning eyes.

"I'm questioning your taste in men right now." He informed her.

A smirk formed on her face and she glanced back at him.

"Oh really? Even ones that I yank out of the ground?" she asked.

"Especially those ones." Dean said as the first time they met flashed through his mind.

_His mind was racing with a million questions as his hands dug through the dirt. It filled his mouth, his nose, his ears. His eyes were clenched shut but he could feel a few particles of the earth find their way into his sockets. His hand finally broke through the barrier of the dirt and he felt empty air on it. Suddenly, before he could drag himself out of the tightly packed dirt, a hand gripped his and pulled him up with an inhuman strength. He didn't fight it, allowing whoever it was to drag him out. He collapsed on the ground and coughed as he tried to expel the dirt from his mouth. His hands reached up to rub his eyes but two hands caught his wrists. He looked up to see two warm dark brown eyes staring at him with a sympathetic look._

"_I would not do that if I were you." her voice sounded like music to his ears._

_He attempted to speak but his voice was too hoarse from shouting for help in the coffin and from the dirt he'd accidentally swallowed._

"_Here."_

_Dean flinched back as she reached out with two fingers. He suddenly felt the burning in his eyes cease. The dirt disappeared from his throat and nose._

_"Come on." she took his hands in hers and helped him scramble to his feet._

"_Who are you?" he croaked, staring at her._

_She was beautiful; there was no denying that. Her beauty had an ethereal look to it, like she was glowing from the inside. If he hadn't just spent forty years in hell and if she hadn't just dragged him out of the ground, he wouldn't hesitate to turn on the Winchester charm._

"_My name is Elena." she said._

"_What are you?" he asked next without hesitating._

_She smiled slightly._

"_How about we get you some sustanance, Dean? Then we'll worry about all of that." she said._

_He stumbled away from her._

"_How the hell do you know my name?" he growled, even more suspicious of her._

"_Because my siblings and I are the ones who fought through hell to get to you." she said softly._

"_Siblings?" he asked, glancing around._

_They were alone in the field. That's when he noticed all of the decimated trees around them._

"_An unfortunate side effect. This forest was beautiful. That is what happens when a legion of angels descends into the fiery pits." She said, glancing around them._

_Dean's head snapped back to her._

"_Excuse me? Did you say…?" he trailed off._

"_Angels? Yes I did. Now I know that you are dying for some water. Let's go." she said, reaching out for him._

_He jerked away from her, hissing at a burning pain in his shoulder. Before he knew it, she was shoving his overshirt off of his shoulders and pushing his t-shirt sleeve up. He didn't have time to protest before they were both staring at a handprint burned into his skin._

"_That cannot feel good. I apologize. Castiel's grip is a little tight." She said._

"_Castiel?" he questioned, realizing that his body was reacting warmly to her closeness._

_Elena glanced up at him and nodded with a tender look in her eyes._

"_My brother." she said._

"_An angel?" he questioned skeptically, unsure of why he wasn't attacking this being._

_She smiled slightly._

"_You don't believe me." she said._

"_Would you believe you?" he asked._

"_I suppose not. But that's only because I remember what being human is like. Any other angel and you would be screwed Luckily I know how you feel." She said, stepping away from him._

_His body screamed with protest that she was no longer there. That was forgotten when he saw the black wings unfurl from her back where they hadn't been before. Dean gaped as they spread out and the sun caught on them, making them gleam beautifully._

"_Believe me now?" she asked, smiling at his shocked expression._

_He walked around her, ignoring his exhaustion and avoiding touching the wings. He saw that they seemed to be just sprouting from her back without any regard for the clothing that she was wearing._

"_How…?" he whispered, moving to her front again._

_They disappeared as quickly as they'd come and she looked normal again._

"_They're just… there. We hide them when we're on earth. Don't want to freak people out, you know." She said, smiling._

"_Why would angels pull me out of hell?" he demanded, getting his wits back now that the wings were no longer visible._

"_Because we need you, Dean Winchester." Elena said._

_He shook his head, backing away from her._

"_I need to go. I need to find…"_

"_Your brother? And Bobby? I'll take you to them, free of charge." Elena said, reaching out her hand._

_He stared at it warily._

"_Why?" he asked._

"_Because I want to help. I fought through hell to get to you. I want to see it through." She said, smiling at him fully._

_He stared at her, looking at the way the smile lit up her face._

"_You said you were human once." He said hesitantly._

_"Oh yeah, not too long ago either. I've only been an angel for a year." She answered._

"_Why did you become an angel?" he asked, immediately regretting the question when he saw the smile fade from her face._

"_That's a story for another time. Now come on. I know you want to see your family." _

_His rough hand slid into her soft one and she smiled at him again. His body sang with happiness again and he realized why. This was the first time, in forty years, that he'd been touched by someone who wasn't trying to hurt him. Someone who wasn't going to torture him and force him to torture others. Her touch was gentle, soothing. It relaxed him even though he should have been wary of her and on his guard. Elena tilted her head to the side and he realized that his thoughts must have been showing on his face. She stepped closer and he didn't move, allowing her to do so._

"_You poor broken man." she murmured, reaching up her hand to stroke his dirt-stained cheek._

_His hand came up and caught hers as his jaw clenched._

"_I'm not broken." He said stubbornly._

"_I can see into your very soul, Dean Winchester." She whispered._

_Before he knew it, she was pulling him into a warm hug, her head lying against his chest. The first thing that popped in his head, funnily enough, was a protest that her impeccable white dress would get stained with the dirt on his clothing._

"_Everything will be all right. I'll make certain of it." she said with certainty and he found himself somehow trusting her words for some reason._

Dean sighed as he pulled himself out of the memory.

"Have you been to see your family lately?" he asked.

Elena pressed her lips together before answering.

"From far away, yes. It still freaks them out when they see me. It's like they don't quite believe that it's me. It'll take them time to get used to the idea of me being alive and an angel." She said softly.

Dean leaned forward, his lips trailing down her spine between her wings.

"I'm sure they'll grow used to it soon. After all, it took me a while, didn't it?" he asked.

Elena nodded.

"What's that necklace that you were wearing earlier? I've never seen it before." he said, remembering that he'd seen it around her neck.

She hesitated and lifted herself up as her wings disappeared. She turned to face him while pulling the sheets up to her chest.

"A family heirloom that I found." She said simply, pulling him in to kiss her. "Now let's get some sleep."

Dean fell onto the pillows with her eagerly.

"You don't sleep." He reminded her.

Elena grinned at him, brushing her hand over his cheek.

"I love watching you sleep, though." She said.

"Creepy ass angel." He said accusingly.

"I'm okay with it." she shrugged.

She watched as he drifted off to sleep. When he finally did, she slid out of his arms and out of the sheets, snapping her fingers. Her clothes appeared on her body and she looked back at him regretfully. He was used to her disappearing while he was sleeping. It wasn't an unusual occurrence. He knew that she had work to do.

* * *

"Okay, so, we're just gonna meet our fate at any time, right?" Dean asked as they walked into the town square.

He was fidgity, not liking this idea. He knew that Elena and Cas were watching over them but it was still nervewracking.

"Yeah. Just walk. Act natural." Sam nodded.

They walked down a set of stairs and suddenly a skateboarder flew down another and past them, causing them to stutter in their walking.

"Okay." Dean breathed, trying to calm himself.

A bicylist flew past them next, making their hearts pound faster. When they reached another set of stairs to walk up into a park, they heard barking and looked up to see a man with three rotweilers coming towards them. Dean pressed himself against Sam, who was shoved against the railing of the stairs, as the growling dogs passed them. When they finally walked up the stairs, they stopped short with wide eyes as the sounds of cheers reached them.

"Oh you gotta be kidding me." Dean groaned.

They looked on as two street performers juggled knives and hatchets in front of one another much to their audience's delight.

"All right, just… just keep walking." Sam stammered, shoving Dean forward as he followed.

"Sam, they're juggling knives. And hatchets." He hissed.

"Yeah, I know." They watched with fearful gazes as the men switched from the knives and hatches to lit up torches. "Can't avoid fate."

Dean scurried between the men first and Sam hesitated before running through as well, escaping unscathed. They reached the street, looking around with fear present in their eyes. Dean stopped short as a construction worker pulled a jammed nailgun away from the wall he was working on. He pointed it right at them and slammed his hand down on it as he shook it. Dean let out a scared half whimper, half yell. He pointed it at the wall again and it worked all of the sudden. They moved on with confused looks.

"All right. I don't get it." Sam said finally.

"I don't either. Who do you got to kill to get killed around here?" Dean wondered glancing around to see if he saw the librarian that Sam described.

"Maybe Cas and Elena were wrong." Sam shrugged.

"Look out!" They suddenly heard a man shout.

They looked up in time to see a huge air conditioning unit fall off a building. They suddenly froze, as well as everyone else on the street and the unit stopped in midair as well. Elena and Castiel walked towards them with wary looks, glancing around to see what they could find. Elena caught sight of the woman walking towards them and her eyes narrowed.

"Castiel. Elena." she said formally.

They both turned to her with similar annoyed looks.

"Atropos. You look well." he said.

"I look like stomped-over crap, because of you." she snapped, glaring between them.

"All right, let's talk about this." Elena sighed, wanting to keep the Fate under control.

"Talk? About what? Maybe about how you two and those two circus clowns destroyed my work. You ruined my life!" Atropos exclaimed.

"Let's not get emotional." Cas sighed.

"Not get emotional?! I had a job. God gave me a job. We all had a script. I worked hard. I was really, really good at what I did... until the day of the big prize fight. And then what happens? You throw out the book!"

"Well, I'm sorry. But freedom is more preferable." Cas said.

"Freedom? This is chaos! How is it better? You know, I even went to heaven just to ask what to do next, and you know what? No one would even talk to me."

Elena looked at Cas as he moved forward. He was better at talking shop with others than she was. She had a lot less sympathy for them than he did.

"There are more pressing matters at hand." He said.

"But I don't know what happens next. I need to know. It's what I do." Atropos snapped.

"I'm sorry. But your services are no longer required." He said, sounding slightly regretful for what would have to be done.

She tilted her head to the side, fury filling her gaze.

"You know what? I've kept my mouth shut. I could have complained, I could have raised a fuss, but I didn't. But you know what the last straw is? Un-sinking the Titanic. You changed the future. You cannot change the past. That is going too far!" she yelled.

"It's Balthazar. He's erratic…" Castiel began.

"Bull crap." The Fate interrupted him. "This isn't about some stupid movie. He's under your orders. You sent him back to save that ship."

"No, I didn't. Why would I?" Cas said with confusion.

"Oh, maybe because you're in the middle of a war and you're desperate?" she scoffed. "Come on. This is about the souls."

Castiel and Elena exchanged a look before he glanced back at her.

"You don't know what you're talking about." He said warningly.

"That angel went and created 50,000 new souls for your war machine!"

"You're confused." Cas said with certainty.

"No. You can't just mint money, Castiel. It's wrong... it's dangerous... and I won't let you." she threatened.

"You don't have a choice." Elena said, stepping forward.

"Maybe I don't. So here's a choice for you. If you don't go back and sink that boat, I'm gonna kill your two favorite pets." She said, gesturing to Sam and Dean, who were frozen in place still.

"I won't let you." Cas and Elena said at the same time.

"Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do?" Atropos asked tauntingly.

"Do you really want to test us?" Cas asked, stepping forward as Elena glared at her.

"Okay. Fine. But think about this… I've got two sisters out there. They're bigger, in every sense of the word. Kill me… Sam and Dean are target one. For simple vengeance. You're not fighting a war or anything, right? You two can watch them every millisecond of every day. Because maybe you've heard… Fate strikes when you least expect it."

Cas looked at Elena, his jaw tightening.

"Balthazar, stop." He said.

Atropos whirled around in time to see Balthazar standing behind her with his blade held high.

"Ah. Awkward." He said, lowering the blade that he was holding.

Atropos whirled back around to glare at Cas and Elena.

"Set things right before I flick your precious boys off a cliff just on principle." She snapped at them.

"Uh, sweetie, before we go, um, I could remove that stick from your…"

"Don't try me." she cut Balthazar off.

"Oh. We'll leave it inserted, then. All right, then. Let's sink the Titanic." He said, nodding with a smirk.

* * *

Sam and Dean both woke up at the same time in the Impala, wincing when they heard Celine Dion blaring out of the radio. They were sitting outside of Bobby's house.

"Dude, what time is it? I-I just had the weirdest dream." Sam grumbled as they climbed out of the car.

"20 bucks says mine was weirder. I am not kidding." Dean sighed, leaning against the car with his elbows on the top.

"No, no, no. I'm not kidding either. I-I mean, it was... just bizarre." Sam argued.

"Mine had the actual Titanic in it." Dean said.

Sam stared at him with shock.

"What? Something on my face?"

"D-did it, uh... not sink, because Balthazar…" the younger brother stammered.

"… had a hate on for Billy Zane?" Dean finished his sentence. "Why are you having my dreams, dude?"

"Wasn't a dream." They both turned to see Cas standing there.

"Wait, what? You're saying this actually happened? That t-the whole... whatever… t-that was real?" Dean demanded, walking forward.

"Yes." The angel nodded.

"Wait. So, what happened?" Sam asked.

"Well, I insisted he go back in time and correct what he'd done." He answered.

"What? Why?" Sam demanded.

"It was the only way to be sure you were safe." Castiel said simply as if it wasn't a choice.

"So... so, you killed... 50,000 people for us." The younger brother said.

"No, I didn't. They were never born. That's far different from being killed, wouldn't you say?" Cas said, his eyes flickering between them.

"Ellen and Bobby? Ash?" Dean questioned.

"I'm sorry." He said regretfully.

There was silence for a few moments until Dean figured something out.

"Hold on. Uh... so, if you guys went a-and changed everything back, then that whole timeline or whatever, it just got erased?"

"Yeah. More or less." Cas nodded.

"Well, then, how come he and I remember it?" he asked, gesturing between them.

"Because I wanted you to remember it." Cas said.

"Why?" Sam questioned.

"I wanted you to know who Fate really is. She's cruel and capricious." He explained.

"I'd go so far as bitch." Dean said.

"Well, yeah. You're the ones who taught me that you can make your own destiny. You don't have to be ruled by fate. You can choose freedom. I still believe that that's something worth fighting for. I just wanted you to understand that." he said.

"So, wait." Dean shook his head. "Did... Balthazar really, uh, unravel the sweater over a chick flick?"

"Yes." Cas nodded. "Absolutely. That's what he did."

He sounded a little shifty but neither of them said anything.

"Wow. Well, might be time to take away his cable privileges. Besides, Titanic didn't suck that bad.

Sam gave Dean a questioning look.

"Winslet's rack." He said.

Sam rolled his eyes as they heard Cas disappear from the spot.

"I'll tell you one thing about Cas, he does not appreciate the finer things." Dean sighed as they turned to head inside.

They found Bobby sleeping on the couch.

"I guess things are back to normal, huh?" Sam sighed.

""Normal. Awesome." Dean scoffed.

"Poor bastard. Doesn't even know how good he had it." Sam said, sympathizing with Bobby.

"Yeah, well, what he doesn't know won't hurt him. I say we keep our mouths shut." Dean said.

"Yeah. I'm with you. Should we wake him?"

"Nah. That's probably the best he's felt all week." Dean said as he walked to the older hunter and covered him with a blanket.

* * *

Elena's eyes popped open as she gasped. She looked up into the wide golden eyes of Gabriel, who looked slightly afraid.

"It's about time." he said, pulling her up to a sitting position.

"What happened?" she grumbled.

"You passed out. You've been out for fifteen minutes. I have no idea. We just landed here and you were gone." He explained.

She glanced around to see that they were in a big room with bookshelves lining the walls.

"Wait… I remember something… the Titanic. And Fate" She muttered as he pulled her to her feet.

"The Titanic? That must have been one strange dream you had when you were passed out." he said.

He helped her to a chair and let her sit in it.

"What is this place?" Elena asked, glancing around.

"This is the room of geneologies. Every geneology ever to exist lives in this room." Gabriel explained, glancing around.

"Why are we here?" She asked, confused.

"Because we are going to figure out exactly where the Petrova line comes from. That necklace is more than just a family heirloom." He said, gesturing to the jewelry still clutched in her hand.

Elena glanced down at it before looking back up at him.

"Let's do it." she said, ready to figure out what the hell was going on. "But first I have to do something else."

* * *

Elena watched as Gabriel did the spell, her hand clutching the weapon that he gave her. Luckily, he knew a thing or two. When the final stage of the spell caused a bright light to flash through the room, Elena blinked her eyes a few times before she saw the woman standing there. A few flashes of memory went through her mind of her standing in the street with Cas and the woman.

_"This is about the souls."_

The woman looked at her with derision.

"Why am I here?" she demanded.

Her eyes flashed to Gabriel and she looked shocked.

"You're supposed to be dead."

"Yeah, I know. Death didn't agree with me." he shrugged.

Atropos's eyes flashed to Elena.

"Why did you call me here?" she asked again.

Elena held up the blade and her eyes widened.

"I've been commissioned by someone to tell you that your time is up." she said.

She looked fearful but she tried to keep her voice strong.

"Not God... he would never..."

"Someone much more powerful... much more annoyed with you. Did you really think that threatening Death was a good idea?" Elena demanded, advancing on her.

"I can leave." Atropos threatened.

"You can't. I'm keeping you here." Gabriel corrected her.

Elena had explained the entire situation to him before they called Atropos to them. He knew that she didn't have a choice but to kill the Fate. The woman looked around for an escape and didn't find one. Gabriel had brought them to a stageroom much like the one that Zachariah used to use.

"My sisters will come after you and your precious boys." she threatened.

"And I'll be waiting for them. I'll be prepared. If I can kill you, I can kill them too." Elena said.

"And what makes you think that you'll kill me? I'm powerful." Atropos said with a slightly more confident look.

Suddenly a blade shoved it's way through her heart.

"Because I have a trickster on my side." Elena breathed in her ear.

The image of her standing in front of Atropos faded, leaving Gabriel standing there with a smirk.

"Sorry honey." he shrugged.

Elena glared at the being as she shoved the blade further into her chest.

"This is for threatening the Winchesters." she said before twisting it and killing the Fate.

Her body dropped to the ground, lifeless. Elena sighed and looked up at Gabriel. It took them moments to realize that they weren't alone.

"Very good, Elena. I must admit, it was a very clean kill. You could do this for a living." Death said as he walked up to Atropos's body.

"Are you offering me a job?" she asked dryly.

He glanced at her.

"I appreciate you doing as I asked without too much fighting. It's abnormal to see that in this day and age."

He glanced over at Gabriel and nodded at him.

"Now, if you'll excuse us."

Death disappeared with the Fate's body and Elena was left standing in the room with Gabriel.

"We're a pretty good team, if I may say so myself." he said.

"Let's just go figure out what the hell is going on with this necklace." Elena sighed, pulling out of her pocket.

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope that wasn't too confusing.**

**In case you didn't understand, Elena became an angel when the car went off of Wickery Bridge. Her parents survived and she didn't. Also, she was in on Cas' plan to defeat Raphael. That will be brought up in the next chapter and we'll see whether she remembers it or not.**

**Review please!**


	23. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**A few things:**

**1. I'm putting of Elena remembering her part in the Titanic episode in the next chapter for a good reason. **

**2. Most of Elena's geneology and some of her history is mostly revealed in this chapter. I put in a few Biblical references just because it's Supernatural and it uses the Bible for some of it's material so why shouldn't I? Also, for this chapter's purposes, Elena cannot travel in time very well on her own because she is not fully an angel and Cas explains it a bit more.**

**3. I am NOT going for historical accuracy in this chapter. That would have taken quite a bit of historical research that I did not have the time to do. **

**4. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

* * *

_She grinned up at her attacker, her lips stretching over her bloodstained teeth._

"_What are you going to do… kill me?" she laughed._

"_I haven't decided yet." He said, raising his hand to place it against her head._

_He began muttering low Latin words and she felt excruciating pain wracking through her body as if her very grace was being ripped from her chest. She threw her head back and screamed, her eyes opening wide as she stared into the deep yellow depths of his sadistic eyes._

* * *

**Three Days Earlier**

"I found something." Gabriel announced.

Elena glanced up at him from where she was reading a book. A week had passed and they were in the library in heaven still. Apparently, they were in the place where God/Chuck was as well as Michael. At her request, neither of them came anywhere near her. She wasn't ready to speak to either of them. Dean and Sam were down on earth researching things on Eve and that's what they thought that Elena was doing up in heaven. She felt like she was betraying them by lying to them but she wasn't ready to tell them that she had a stronger connection to Eve than any of them expected. She didn't want to tell them until she knew everything and she wasn't going to know everything unless she kept researching.

To be fair, she was doing research on Eve and she was trying to stop the monster from destroying everything and using Elena to do it. She was just going about it a different way than they were.

"What?" she asked.

He beckoned her over and she squinted at the words on the page that he was pointing to.

"Who is Jael?" she asked, knowing that she was most likely pronouncing it incorrectly.

"Your great great great great great great great great great…"

"Gabriel!"

"… she's your ancestor."

"What about her?" Elena asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Well… she's sort of famous." He said, looking up at her.

"Famous how?"

He flipped the page and her eyes widened at the drawing.

"What's going on there?" she asked.

"They've got it all wrong but it's the right message. Jael and the assassination of Sisera." He said.

"Okay… you've got my interest." She said, sitting down.

* * *

Sam said as they glanced around the office. They were at the Campbell compound that had been since abandoned since Gwen brought the others the news of Samuel's death.

"It's here, somewhere. I know it." he said, gesturing to the desk. "Help me move this."

They shoved the desk aside to reveal a trapdoor.

"I'll be damned." Bobby muttered.

When they got down there, they found mounds of books and other hunter helpers.

"Welcome to the Campbell family library." Sam said, looking around.

Dean shone his flashlight over everything as Bobby finished descending the stairs.

"So, Samuel collected all this stuff, huh?" Dean asked.

"Apparently." Sam replied.

"Wow." Dean said, refusing to sound impressed over the bastard even if his collection was worthy of it. "All right, well, what are we looking for?"

He looked at Bobby for a cue.

"Well, anything that'll put a run in the Octomom's stockings. Pick a row." Bobby shrugged, gesturing to the books.

Thirty minutes later, they were sitting at the table in the middle of the room with stacks of books beside them.

"Bingo." Bobby said as he found something in one of the books. "Either of you jokers ever heard anything about a Phoenix?"

Sam shook his head.

"River, Joaquin, or the giant flaming bird?" Dean asked, eliciting a chuckle from his little brother.

Bobby just stared at him.

"It says here that the ashes of a Phoenix can burn the mother." He said, unamused as always.

"The mother?" Sam said, perking up at that.

"Great. Where do we get one?" Dean asked, sounding like he dared to hope that they had a break in Eve's case.

"You got me. I thought it was a myth." Bobby shrugged.

"All right, great." Sam sighed. "Well, let's see if we can find something out about a Phoenix."

An hour later, they were all looking through books for any mention of the Phoenix. Dean was at a bookshelf looking through more books. He found something that dared to bring a delighted grin to his face. He snuck a look to Sam and Bobby to see if they noticed and they didn't. Partly for fun and partly for research, he began thumbing through the book. His eyes widened when he saw the words on the page.

"Guys." He said, running to the table. "Guys, guys, guys, guys, guys, check this out."

The other two men looked up at him with surprise at his sudden excitement.

"March 5, 1861. Sunrise, Wyoming. Gun killed a Phoenix today. Left a pile of smoldering ash." He read.

"Really?" Sam breathed. "Whose gun?"

A grin broke out on Dean's face.

"Colt's." he said reverently.

"Colt? Colt like…" Sam cut off.

"… like the Colt. From…" he held the book up to show the title page. "Samuel Colt's Journal."

"What?!" Sam grinned as well. "That's his?"

"Yeah." Dean confirmed.

"Dude, no." Sam said, his eyes lighting up.

"Dude, yes." Dean nodded, glee in his face as well.

The younger brother made a grab for the book.

"Well, let me see it."

Dean drew it away protectively.

"Get your own." he said.

"Well, what else did he say about the Phoenix?" Bobby said, interrupting their moment. "What does it look like? Has it got feathers?"

"It just says Phoenix." Dean shrugged.

"Did he say where he tracked it?" Bobby asked.

"No." he shook his head.

"All right, so I guess we got to find one of our own, whatever it is." Sam said.

They all thought for a moment before Dean sat up even straighter.

"I know where we can find one. March 5, 1861. Sunrise, Wyoming. We'll Star Trek IV this bitch." he said.

Sam glanced at Bobby and shrugged cluelessly.

"I only watched Deep Space Nine." The older hunter said.

Dean looked between them before shaking his head.

"It's like I don't even know you guys anymore. Star Trek IV. Save the whales." He said.

They both shrugged at the same time.

"We hop back in time, we join up with Samuel Colt, we hunt the Phoenix, and then we haul the ashes back home with us."

"Time travel?" Bobby said doubtfully. "That's a reasonable plan?"

"We got a guy who can swing it." Dean shrugged.

He pointed at Sam.

"Elena? Come on down. We got a break in the case."

* * *

Elena shivered as the prayer hit her. It always freaked her out when her grace lit up like that.

"Dean's calling me." she said, glancing at Gabriel.

"You should go to him. I'm sure it's important." he said.

"This is important, Gabriel." She said, gesturing to the book.

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Since when is anything more important than your two favorite boys?" he asked, sounding a little bit worried.

"I am doing this because they are important. I am a danger to them as long as Eve has control over me. I have to stop it and this is how." Elena argued.

"How is this going to help destroy the bitch? You're reading stories. Those hunters down there are trying to kill her." Gabriel said.

"If I can figure out how she has an attachment to me, I can figure out how to use it to destroy her." she said.

"So what would you do instead of going to the Winchesters?" the archangel asked, standing up.

"Take me back in time to Jael or whatever. Let me see for myself whether or not there's anything going on with her and Eve." She said.

"What?" he asked, his eyebrows flying up.

"This is as far back as we've been able to trace my lineage, Gabriel. This might be the answer." She said desperately, trying to convince him.

"No." he said, shaking his head.

"Why not?" she asked stubbornly.

"Because last time you went back in time, you almost killed yourself trying to get back." Gabriel said.

"I'll have you with me. Come on Gabriel. I have to do this. I have to see what is going on. Please." Elena pleaded.

"I said no and I meant it, Elena. This is too dangerous." He refused still.

She stared at him with a shocked look as he walked away from her.

"Fine." She snapped.

Gabriel looked back at her as she yanked the necklace off of the table and pulled it over her head, tucking it under her shirt.

"Where are you going?" he demanded.

"To go see what they need." She snapped.

"Don't do anything stupid." Gabriel warned her.

"It's not like I can do anything without your help." Elena said, furious more at herself than Gabriel.

She was emotional over this and she had no idea why. To have come so close to getting answers and now she felt like the rug was ripped out from underneath her feet. She closed her eyes, disappearing and reappearing in a basement. Bobby, Dean, and Sam were all looking at her with surprise.

"What took you so long?" Dean asked curiously.

"I was talking to Gabriel before I came. What's going on?" she asked.

A smile broke across Dean's face and she watched with interest as he began explaining at that they'd found to her.

"So let me get this straight, your plan is to go back in time and collect ashes from a Phoenix that Samuel Colt kills with his gun?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"You think it's stupid?" Dean asked, suddenly losing his confidence.

Elena grinned at him.

"I think it's brilliant." She said, walking forward to kiss him thoroughly.

As relieved as she was that they'd found a possible way to kill Eve, she'd also found a way to get answers. It was all falling into place perfectly.

"So… do you think we can get Gabriel to zap us back?" Sam asked.

Her smile faltered.

"He was called by Michael to do something else right before I came here. He's busy." She lied.

"Oh… Cas then?" Sam said, looking at Dean.

He nodded and closed his eyes.

"Castiel. The, uh, fate of the world is in the balance." Dean peeked one eye open. "So, come on down here. Come on, Cas, I Dream of Jeannie your ass down here pronto. Please."

They heard the rustling of feathers and turned to see, surprisingly, a pretty blonde woman standing there instead of their familiar dark haired, blue eyed angel.

"Jeannie?" Dean questioned, confused.

"Rachel. I understand you need some assistance? How can I help you?" she asked in a soft voice.

Dean glanced at Elena and she shrugged.

"Well, uh, we kind of need to talk to the Big Kahuna." He said.

"I'm here on Castiel's behalf." Rachel said simply.

"Where is he?" Sam questioned.

"Busy." She answered.

"Busy?" Dean said.

She nodded, her eyes flickering between all of them.

"Well, we've got a line on the mother of freaking everything, so…"

"I'm sure your issue's very important." Rachel cut Dean off. "But Castiel is currently commanding an army, so…"

"… so we get stuck with Miss Moneypenny." Dean finished for her.

"So you need to learn your place." she snapped, suddenly not so friendly.

"Look, I don't know who you think you are…" Elena said, stepping forward.

"I'm his friend." She interrupted, her suddenly cold eyes turning on Elena.

"What, you think we're not?" Sam scoffed.

"I think you call him when you need something. We're fighting a war!"

"We get that." Elena said.

"Clearly you don't, or you wouldn't call him every time you stub your toe, you petty, entitled little piece…"

Another set of wings fluttering caught their attention.

"Rachel. That's enough." Castiel interrupted her.

They all turned to look at him.

"I told you I'd take care of this." she sighed, looking at them with contempt.

"It's all right. You can go." he said, glancing at her.

"You're staying?" she demanded incredulously.

"Go." he said and it escaped no one's attention that it was an order. "I'll come when I can."

She glared around at them one last time before disappearing.

"Wow." Dean said. "Friend of yours?"

"Yes. She's, uh, my lieutenant. She's... committed to the cause." Castiel nodded.

"We're sorry to call you down, Cas. We wouldn't if it wasn't important." Elena said apologetically.

"I understand." He said. "Now, what do you need?"

* * *

They were gathered in the study getting ready.

"Where the hell's Dean?" Bobby wondered as he glanced around.

"Supply run." Sam and Elena said at the same time.

"Um, about your plan. You'll only have twenty-four hours." Cas said.

They turned to him with wide eyes.

"Wait, what?" Sam said.

"Why?" Elena demanded.

He sighed, facing them.

"Well, the answer to your question can best be expressed as a series of partial differential equations."

"Yeah, aim lower." Bobby cut in.

The angel's eyes flashed to the older hunter's and Bobby gestured to Elena and Sam, who had clueless looks.

"The further back I send you, the harder it becomes to retrieve you. 24 hours is all I can risk. If I don't pull you home within that time, you'll be lost to me." he explained.

"Well, then we better get you a watch."

They looked past Cas to see Dean carrying in four large shopping bags.

"What the hell's all that?" Bobby asked as Dean grinned proudly.

"We are going native. Got to blend in." He said.

He held out one of the bags and Elena read **Western World** on the side.

"Uh, no, thanks. I'm fine." Sam said, shaking his head.

"Sam." Dean sighed.

"Dean, I can - I can wear this." the younger brother gestured to the outfit he was wearing.

"And look like a spaceman?" he scoffed.

"Look, just because you're obsessed with all that Wild West stuff…" Sam said.

"No, I'm not." Dean cut him off as Elena grinned and Bobby and Cas looked on with vaguely disturbed looks.

"You have a fetish." Sam informed him.

"Shut up. I like old movies." Dean said dismissively.

"You can recite every Clint Eastwood movie ever made, line for line." Sam said.

"Even the monkey movies?" Bobby asked with disgust in his voice.

"Especially the monkey movies." Elena said with laugh.

"His name is Clyde."

Sam threw his hands up as if that proved his entire point.

"At least wear the damn shirt." Dean snapped.

Minutes later, they both came clomping downstairs in cowboy boots. Sam was in a white shirt embroidered with yellow roses. Dean was wearing the whole outfit, complete with a sarape. They were both in cowboy hats. Elena hid her mouth in her hands to keep from bursting out in laughter.

"Dean, this is stupid. I look stupid." Sam snapped.

Bobby's eyes went to Dean and he raised an eyebrow.

"You going to a hoedown?" he asked.

"Now, is it… is it customary to wear a blanket?" Cas asked, gesturing to Dean's outfit.

"It's a sarape. And, yes. It's, uh..." he caught sight of the angel's clueless look. "… never mind. Let's just go."

"What about you?" Bobby asked, glancing at Elena.

"I'll take a look around when I get there and change into whatever clothing I deem fit." She decided.

Dean walked to a bag that Bobby packed for them.

"What's this?" he asked, lifting some of the gold that was shoved in there.

Elena recognized it as some of the gold that they got from the dragons.

"Where you're goin', they don't take plastic." Bobby reminded them.

Cas stood in front of them as Elena reached out and grabbed Dean's hand.

"I'll send you back to March fourth. That should give you time to find the Colt... and this Phoenix creature." He said.

"All right, well, see ya at High Noon tomorrow." Dean said proudly, winking at Bobby.

"I have to go." Cas said once they disappeared.

"What about getting the boys back?" Bobby asked.

"Pray for me in twenty-four hours, and I'll return." The angel said, sounding tired.

"I'll pray for all of us." Bobby said, reaching back and grabbing a timer off of his desk as Castiel disappeared.

He set it for twenty-four hours before pressing start.

* * *

"All right. Let's go find Samuel Colt." Dean said, starting forward.

Sam nodded as he looked down at his watch, setting the alarm for twenty-four hours.

"Hey, we should try the Saloon first, uh, see what we get from the locals." Dean said, sounding excited.

"Sure." Sam chuckled. "Whatever, Sundance."

"I'll join you. I'm gonna go take a quick looksie around and decide on my outfit." Elena said, pressing a kiss to Dean's cheek before disappearing.

"Think we'll have time to hit on saloon girls?" Dean said with a grin at Sam.

He gave Dean a look.

"I'm kidding. I'll leave that honor to you. I got my girl with me. Come on."

Sam took a step forward to follow him and stepped right in manure.

"Oh, damn it. Come on." he groaned.

Dean glanced back and grinned.

"You know what that is?" he said.

"Yeah, it's horse shit!" Sam snapped.

"Authenticity!" Dean said, sounding thrilled.

Sam groaned and attempted to rub it off onto the ground as they walked towards the authentically looking old west town. They immediately happened upon a scene that they'd only seen in movies, a hanging.

"We stand here today… March 4th, 1861... to execute justice upon Elias Finch for the murder of his own wife."

"Wow. Talk about authenticity." Sam said, his eyes wide.

The mood around them was solemn as the townspeople were gathered to watch. Three men stood upon the platform with the accused, who looked furious.

"Sentence handed down by myself, Tye Mortimer, duly appointed judge of the Wyoming circuit. You will be hung by your neck until you die." The judge announced.

"You got anything to say?" the sheriff asked the accused.

"You're gonna burn for this. Every one of you." Elias Finch said.

The sheriff nodded at his deputy, who reached out and pulled a lever. The man fell through the platform and they heard his bones crack over the gasps of the crowd.

"Good times." Dean muttered as the crowd began to disperse. "So where do we find Sammy Colt?"

"No idea. Huh." Sam watched as the judge and sheriff walked down the steps of the hanging platform. "I think I know who to ask, though."

A man turned around in front of them studied Dean's attire with a blank look.

"Nice blanket." He said dryly before turning to walk off.

Dean stared forward with a disappointed look. Then he shoved the bag into Sam's hands before stripping the blanket off and throwing it to the ground, leaving him in his black shirt and brown vest. They turned towards the jail and walked in to find the sheriff, judge, and deputy all sitting at a table. The cells were all empty.

"Sheriff? Can we have a word?" Dean said.

The man glanced over at them, looking them over.

"Depends who's askin'." He said.

"Marshal Eastwood. Clint Eastwood." Dean peeled his vest back to show the badge pinned to his shirt.

"This here is, uh, Walker." He said, gesturing to Sam who nodded. "He's a Texas Ranger."

"You're lawmen?" the judge asked, raising an eyebrow at them.

The door opened and the three men stood before Dean and Sam could look back at who it was. They all tipped their hats off.

"I can vouch for them."

They turned and their eyes widened at what they saw. Elena walked in but she looked very different. Her dress was dark purple and with a lighter purple underskirt that showed at the bottom. The sleeves were black lace and the chain to her necklace disappeared in the tight bodice that showed off her small waist. Her hair was curled and pulled halfway up.

"Ma'am." The sheriff said respectfully.

"Elena… Eastwood." She said, stepping up next to Dean and sliding her arm into his.

"So, what can I do for you boys? And the lady?" the sheriff asked.

"Uh, we're looking for a man." Sam said.

"I'll bet." Judge Mortimer said as they sat down. "Nice shirt, there."

He nodded at Dean, who's pleased look faded.

"What's wrong with my shirt?" he demanded.

"You're very clean." The judge said as Elena and Sam smirked slightly.

"It's dirtier than it looks." Dean muttered, defeated.

"We need to find Samuel Colt. Do you know him?" Elena spoke up with a polite smile.

"The gun maker?" the sheriff asked.

"Yeah. Is he in town?" Dean said.

"Not that I know of. Might try asking Elkins over at the Saloon. Been here longer than God." The judge said.

Dean tipped his hat at them and turned to escort Elena out as Sam opened the door for them.

"I like the dress." He said, smiling over at her.

"It's authentic, I suppose." She said, grinning back at him.

They walked to the saloon and entered with bravado thanks to Dean. He immediately discovered that it was not crowded or in full on party mode. The hits kept coming from his point of view. There were only two saloon girls in the corner and they did not look like women to be slept with.

"This is not awesome." Dean said.

Sam gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder as Elena walked to the bar.

"Hi." Sam said.

Elena slid onto a stool with difficulty and glared down at the dress. Sam and Dean simply leaned against the bar.

"We don't often get women in here. Well… not godly women." The bartender said, his eyes flashing to his saloon girls.

"We're travelers looking for refreshments, if you'll allow it." Elena said.

He smiled at her.

"What'll you have?" he said, glancing at the boys.

"Oh, uh, okay. Great. I'll have your top-shelf whiskey." Dean said.

"Only have the one shelf." The bartender answered, not nearly as impressed with Dean as he was with Elena.

"That'll do just fine." Dean pointed at Sam. "And he'll have a sarsaparilla."

Elena waved him off when he looked at her, trusting none of the drinks to be good.

"You Elkins?" Sam asked.

"One and only." Elkins said as he poured out the drinks.

"You know a man named Samuel Colt?" Dean questioned.

"He passed through here about four years ago." the man nodded.

"He still around?" Sam asked.

"Rumor is, he's building a railroad stop 20 miles out of town, just by the Postal road. Middle of nowhere."

"The Devil's Gate?" Sam whispered.

"Location fits." Dean nodded.

"Howdy, boys."

They turned to see a woman in a dirty white saloon dress descending the stairs with a seductive grin. She had brown teeth and a mysterious sore on the corner of her chapped lips.

"Darla's my best girl." Elkins said proudly as she approached Dean.

Elena's eyebrows flew up as Darla put a hand on his chest.

"Try me. You want a kiss?" she asked, leaning towards him.

"S-so much more germier than I pictured." He said, gagging.

Elena stood, seizing the back of her dress and dragging her away from him.

"That is my husband, Darla." She said, glaring at her.

The woman put her hands on her hips as Dean looked at Elena with a mixture of pride and slight arousal at her defense of him.

"Well if you weren't here, you wouldn't have to see me proposition him, now would you? This ain't no place for you." the woman fired back.

Elena opened her mouth to reply with a snarky remark but they were interrupted by someone else entering the saloon.

"Darla!" Judge Mortimor called.

The woman's face fell as Elena looked at her triumphantly.

"Ah. Judge. Nice to see you." Darla said, turning to him.

"I thought we had a date." The judge said, pointing upstairs.

Darla glanced back lustfully at Dean before turning to ascend them with the old man.

"Wow, that was a close one." Dean breathed when they were out of sight, shooting Elena a grateful look.

"I guess it's good to be judge." Sam said with a smirk as Dean and Elena both shuddered.

Dean reached out and grabbed his whiskey, taking a drink of it. He immediately spat it out and retched.

"Ohh. It's like gasoline." He choked out.

Sam let out a chuckle.

"Sarsaparilla ain't half bad." He said.

Several minutes later, as Sam finished his drink and Dean stared at him pathetically, they suddenly heard a loud scream from upstairs. Dean and Sam were immediately on the move, running up the stairs. Elena turned to follow them but stumbled on her dress and got it caught on the stool, glaring down at it.

"Stupid…effing… dress." She grumbled, finally freeing it and chasing them upstairs.

She ran in to see that Darla was huddled in the corner in even less clothing and Dean and Sam were staring down at the bed where a burnt skeleton was lying with ashes around it.

* * *

"You okay, Sheriff?" Sam asked.

They all looked up at him as he stared down at the judge's remains on the bed.

"Course I'm okay." He snapped back.

"It was a ghost!" Darla cried.

"It wasn't a ghost. Unless ghosts leave footprints." He gestured to the floor where muddy footprints led to the balcony of the room.

"I am telling you, Elias Finch was here. He did... that, and then he walked out that door." The saloon girl said in a shaky voice.

"Rope didn't kill him. Seen it before." the sheriff said, looking at Sam and Dean.

Elena stood quietly behind them. The sheriff tried to get her to leave the room but she assured him that she'd seen worse.

"Well, you got any idea where he could be?" Sam asked.

"Could be a thousand places." He shrugged.

"Well, you got a way to flush him out?" Dean questioned.

"Course. We're gonna form a posse. Then we're gonna string Finch up right. Put a bullet in his head for good measure." The sheriff explained.

"That actually sounds like a good plan." Dean nodded.

"You two should come along. Meet downstairs at dawn." He said.

"Yeah, we'll be there." Dean said.

The sheriff's eyes flickered over Dean's outfit.

"Get yourselves some real gear first, huh?" he said before walking out with Darla following him, still in hysterics.

"Well, I think we ought to pay our respects to Finch." Dean said, turning to them.

"I was thinking the same thing." Sam said.

* * *

They walked out to the graveyard with Elena following behind them, stumbling over rocks and stuff on the ground.

"You know what?" she hissed. "Fuck this dress."

She snapped her fingers and they looked back to see her wearing a white button down shirt with the first few buttons undone, a brown suede vest that was buttoned up, and dark jeans tucked into brown cowboy boots. Her hair was still free and curly. Dean grinned at her.

"I like it." he said.

"Uh huh." Elena fired back dryly.

He pulled her in and kissed her, transferring the hat from his head to hers.

"Completes the look." he shrugged.

Elena smiled at him and took his hand as they walked to the grave to find that it was completely dug out. The area around it was all black as if something had burned through it.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Sam asked.

"Rose from the ashes, burned up its victim? You know, maybe we're not looking for a flaming bird. Maybe the Phoenix is actually walking around in cowboy boots." Dean said, glancing around.

"That makes sense, right? Could be Finch. So, question is, how do we put this thing out?" Sam said.

"Well, we do know one thing that'll kill friggin' anything, right?" Dean said, shrugging.

"Yeah, the Colt." He nodded.

"So, you go get the gun." Dean said.

"But isn't the gun coming here? I mean, according to Samuel Colt's journal?" Sam wondered.

"Yeah, but people here barely even know who Colt is. Maybe you got to go find him and make history." Elena said, following Dean's thought process.

"We'll stay here, hook up with the posse. Cause you know me… I'm a posse magnet."

Elena lifted her head and looked at him, furrowing her brow at the bad play on words.

"I mean, I love posse."

Sam glared at Dean, obviously not finding it funny either.

"Make that into a t-shirt." Dean said, gesturing to his chest with a grin.

"You done?" Sam asked.

Dean nodded but continued grinning. Elena shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Look, the problem is, Colt's 20 miles outside of town. How am I supposed to get there and back before noon?" Sam asked.

A horse whinnied in the distance and an idea bloomed in Dean's head.

"Ride 'em, cowboy."

They purchased the horse with one of the watches and Sam stared at it warily.

"You ride out and when you need to get back, pray for me and I'll come grab you both." Elena said.

Sam nodded nervously and approached the horse.

"Try the other side. Yeah, good boy." Dean nodded as Sam switched sides and climbed on.

"Right." he sighed as the horse took a few steps forward. "Yeah. Right. Hey. This actually feels all right."

"All right, take it… just take it easy." Dean said carefully.

"Yeah, you bet. I'm good. All right, eleven right?" He asked as the horse began trotting off.

"Don't be late!" Dean called

"Okay." Sam nodded.

"All right. Go on. Go. Hyah!" Dean slapped the horse and it began running, startling Sam.

"I'm okay!" he yelled back at them as they rode off.

"That poor horse." Dean said, shaking his head.

Elena laughed and took his hand, leading him back to the motel where they would stay the night until they met up with the posse the next morning.

* * *

The sheriff walked out of the jail, getting his horse ready for the next day so that they wouldn't waste any time. Suddenly the animal startled and ran off. He turned to see a man step out of the shadows and recognized him immediately. He pulled out his gun and shot Elias several times to no avail.

"Forgive me! I'm sorry!" he pleaded as the furious man approached him.

"You had your chance. Tell it to the judge." Elias growled, reaching out a hand and touching his chest.

He watched emotionlessly as the sheriff burned and screamed underneath his fingertips.

* * *

Castiel glanced around the empty warehouse with confusion as to why he was there.

"We need to talk." He turned to see Rachel standing there.

"You summoned me here?" Cas demanded.

"Castiel, I've been hearing things. Things I don't want to believe. Just tell me if it's true." She said, looking pained as she stepped forward.

"If what's true?" he asked.

"You know. Your dirty little secret." She said with a catch of emotion in her voice.

He stared at her for a moment before his shoulders dropped.

"I have to defeat Raphael." He sighed.

Rachel stared at him with a hurt expression.

"Not this way, Castiel." She said pleadingly.

"Rachel." He said, putting his hands out.

"We put our faith in you, and... look what you're turning into."

"I don't have a choice." Castiel said desperately.

"Then neither do I." She yanked out her blade and stabbed him in the chest a little to the left of his heart.

He yelled out and shoved her off, causing the blade to pull out of his chest. Light poured out of the wound but he couldn't pay it any mind. His own blade slid out of his sleeve and he circled her as she did the same to him. She launched at him and eventually, Cas got the upper hand, whirling them around and pulling her against his chest as he stabbed the blade into her heart. She gasped and choked as he laid her down on the ground gently.

"I'm sorry." He murmured just before her grace flashed through the room and her wings burned onto the concrete ground.

* * *

Bobby was reading out of a book from Samuel's library when Cas appeared, falling onto his hands and knees in Bboby's kitchen, bleeding and wheezing.

"What the hell is going on?! Cas?" he demanded as he ran into the kitchen to help him.

The angel waved him off and dug his hand into his wound, quickly drawing a sigil on the cabinet. Then he stumbled up to his feet and turned to Bobby, still breathing with difficulty.

"Cas? Are we running or fighting?" Bobby asked.

"We're..." he moved forward and collapsed in the hunter's arms, unconscious.

"Balls!" Bobby cursed.

* * *

"New hat." Elkins said as Dean walked into the saloon.

He was in completely different clothing. Elena walked in behind him wearing another dress so that she wouldn't scandalize the town by daring to wear pants. This time it was a light green dress with frills and lace. Her hair was styled much the same as it was the day before.

"I look good." Dean said proudly.

Elena had to agree, liking this more authentic old west oufit on him.

"Where's the posse? I must be early." He said, glancing around at the empty saloon.

"Or you're the only greenhorn dumb enough to go chasing after a ghost." Elkins said with a smirk.

"What are you talking about?" Dean questioned. "Sheriff's tough as nails. He'll be here."

"Oh, God!" A man shouted from outside the saloon. "The Sheriff's dead!"

Dean turned to look at Elena with wide eyes.

"Or not." He said.

They walked out to find a pile of ash on the ground with the sheriff's silver badge sitting on top.

"Great." Dean sighed, glancing up at Elkins. "Who's the Sheriff now?"

The bartender bent down and picked the shiny star up. He straightened up and reached out, pinning it on Dean's vest.

"What? What...?" he stammered.

"Now... congratulations, Sheriff." Elkins said, sounding more taunting than congratulatory.

Elena stared at Dean with wide eyes, recognizing the happiness in his as the bartender walked away.

"Elena… I'm sheriff!" he hissed at her.

She laughed at his childish glee.

* * *

Sam eased the door open to Samuel Colt's house.

"Hello?" he called, stepping in.

Suddenly a flask of cold water was thrown on him and he looked to see an old man standing there.

"Okay, not a demon! Not a demon! Just… just a hunter. Sheesh." He said, wiping the water from his face.

"You're what?" the man said grumpily, glaring at him.

"You Samuel Colt? My name is Sam Winchester. I'm… I'm a hunter from the year 2011." Sam said.

Colt stared at him for a moment.

"Prove it." he challenged Sam.

He dug through his pockets before he found his phone and handed it over. Samuel looked at it before shrugging and walking to his desk without handing it back to him.

"All right." he said simply, sitting down.

"A-all right?" Sam asked, shocked. "That's… uh, that's it?"

"Well, when you've done this job as long as I have... a giant from the future with some magic brick doesn't exactly give you the vapors." The legendary hunter replied.

"I need your help killing a Phoenix." Sam requested.

"A Phoenix? They exist?"

"Well, you shoot one in about three hours." He shrugged.

"If you say so." Colt sighed.

"I don't. You do." Sam pulled his journal out and handed it to him.

He looked at his journals side by side with a confused look.

"That's... I'm either too drunk or not drunk enough. So what is it I'm about to exactly do?" he asked, looking up at Sam as he handed the journal back.

"Well, the Phoenix is in Sunrise, so, uh, if we leave now, you can…"

"I appreciate your situation, but I'm not gonna be of any help to you. I'm booked." Samuel said.

"Right, but… but you say right here…" Sam said, flipping through the book.

"Don't believe everything that you read." Colt corrected him.

"But you're a hunter." Sam said, staring at him.

"Retired." He replied.

"There's no such thing." Sam scoffed.

"I'm out." Samuel shrugged.

"There is no getting out. Look, for what it's worth, in my time, you're a hero." Sam said desperately.

"Me?" the hunter asked doubtfully.

"Yes, sir." He nodded.

Colt let out a laugh and shook his head.

"Now, look, we… we need to kill this Phoenix. Its ashes are the only thing that can kill the monster I'm hunting. So stow your crap for a few hours, and let's go. We got to go now. So, either you're coming with me, or I need the gun." Sam snapped, gesturing to the door.

"What gun?" Samuel asked.

"The gun." Sam said with an obvious ton.

"Oh, that gun. I lost it in a game of Stud." Colt shrugged.

Sam squinted at him.

"You're lying." he accused the other man.

"Am I?" He laughed. "Now, that doesn't sound like me."

"You shot a couple of demons with it less than an hour ago."

It was Colt's turn to squint at Sam.

"How do you figure?" he asked him in a challenging tone.

Sam took a deep breath and pointed at the door.

"Two pairs of bootprints. Cabin reeks of sulfur."

Colt nodded.

"Not bad." He opened his jacket to reveal the gun on a hip holster. "You don't want it. It's a curse. Believe me."

"Great. Then let me take it off your hands." Sam shrugged.

"You go put on a few more miles and come back, and we'll talk." Samuel said with a smirk, reaching for a bottle of alcohol.

His demeanor was far too familiar for Sam.

"Trust me, I've got plenty of mileage." Sam said frustratedly.

"I'm doing you a favor. Believe me." Colt informed him.

"So, what? You can really just sit there?" he demanded.

"I've given my whole life to this. I'm done." The hunter said simply.

"So it doesn't matter what happens." Sam said.

"No, it doesn't." Colt shook his head.

"So everything you did, it all means nothing?"

The man stared up at him, measuring him up.

"Give me the gun." Sam said pleadingly.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door of the deputy's house.

"Who's there?" he asked.

"Candygram for Mongo!" a strange high pitched voice said outside the door.

The man walked to it with confusion.

"Howdy, pilgrim." Dean said, pushing the door open.

Elena followed and shot the terrified deputy a friendly smile in hopes of calming him.

"I ain't no pilgrim." He snapped at Dean, raising his gun.

"All right." Dean sighed, looking at the gun. "Is that any way to, uh... greet your new boss?"

He pulled his jacket to the side to reveal the badge on his vest.

The deputy scoffed and shook his head.

"Missed you at the posse this morning." Dean glanced at his suitcase. "What's going on here?"

"Going to visit my sister." The man said, sitting back on the bed.

"Well, she'll have to wait." Dean said simply.

"But if I don't…"

"Finch said he was coming back for the former Sheriff..." Dean held up one finger.

"… Judge Mortimer..." a second finger.

"… and you. That's two down and one to go."

"Then just let me go!" The deputy yelled pleadingly.

"You really think you can outrun him? He is going to kill you. Unless..." Dean trailed off, nodding at him.

"Unless what?" The deputy said, not following him.

"Unless we gank him first." He shrugged.

"Gank?" the man asked, confused. "What's gank? Mister, you're crazy. No way. You're on your own."

"I'm not asking you to throw down with him. I'm asking you to play your part." Dean snapped, no longer having any patience.

"My part?" the deputy asked fearfully.

"Yeah. Bait." Dean nodded.

* * *

Bobby was walking back into the room with a beer when Cas sat up and exhaled sharply. The hunter hurried to his side.

"Cas, you… you like you went twelve rounds with truckasaurus. What happened?" he asked, looking him over.

"I was, uh... I was betrayed. Rachel, uh... Raphael... he corrupted her. She turned on me." he said, wincing in pain.

"Sorry. Girl's a real... peach."

"She's... dead. I... was wounded. I needed... safety. Thank you." he tried to get up but grunted with pain.

Bobby pushed him back.

"What's with the finger painting?" he asked, glancing back at the cabinet.

"It's a warding symbol against angels." Castiel explained, sighing heavily.

"How bad's it hurt?" Bobby said, nodding at the wound.

"I'll heal." Cas said simply.

"Well, good... cause we got less than an hour before you pick up the kids at Frontierland." He said.

Cas stared down at his hands.

"I can't."

"Come again?" Bobby said, raising his eyebrows.

"This fight... drained me." he admitted.

"Well, if you're up on blocks, then call in another halo who can get the job done." Bobby said.

"I can't." Cas snapped, frustrated.

"Well, there's got to be something that can juice you up. A spell… something." Bobby argued, not willing to give up.

"There is one thing that might work, but... it's extremely dangerous." The angel said, looking up at him.

"Shocker." The hunter said dryly. "So, lay it on me."

"It's your soul." He said.

"What do you want me to do? Make another deal? Seal it with a kiss?" Bobby demanded, willing to do it if it brought the boys and Elena back.

"I need you to let me touch it." he said.

"Touch it?" Bobby asked.

"The human soul… it's pure... energy. If I can siphon some of that off, I-I might be able to bring Sam, Dean, and Elena back."

"And the catch is...?" he questioned.

"Doing this is like... putting your hand in a nuclear reactor. I have to do it very gingerly." Cas said.

"Or...?"

"Or you'll explode." The angel said regretfully.

"Well." Bobby sighed. "Keep both hands on the wheel. Let's do this."

* * *

Elena was sitting in a chair with difficulty as Dean glanced over at the clock nervously.

"Nothing?" he asked.

She shook her head slowly.

"Never been late in your damn life, Sam, and now you're dragging ass." He gorwled.

"So this is your big plan, huh? Just let me rot in here till Finch comes?" the deputy demanded from where he was in the jail cell.

"Pretty much. Why's he gunning for you, anyway?" Dean asked, glancing over at him.

"I guess you missed the part where we hung him?" the man said.

"No, I'm thinking to a thing like Finch, that's no big whoop. He would've just blown town, but he came back. That seems personal." Dean shrugged.

"I'll tell you what… you let me out of here, and we'll talk." The deputy offered.

"No can do." He said, clicking his tongue.

The man in the cell suddenly cried out and flinched back. They turned to see Finch walking in.

"Open up that cell." The Phoenix said, glancing at it.

"Open it yourself. You melt people's faces off. I'll bet you got the juice to tear that apart easy, don't you? Unless you can't. Just like you couldn't break those cuffs when they strung you up."

Dean tossed an iron nail at Elias and he caught it by reflex. He dropped it almost immediately as it burned his skin.

"Iron shackles... iron bars, iron nail. See a pattern? Don't worry. Most creatures I meet can't get it up for iron. It's a common monster problem." Dean informed him.

"So you're a hunter." Elias said, staring at him.

"Slash sheriff." Dean shrugged.

Elena stood and walked to stand beside him protectively. The Phoenix watched her movements closely.

"You know what this son of a bitch did?" Elias demanded, pointing at the deputy.

"Do tell." Dean requested.

"I was married to a woman. Good woman… like yours." He said, nodding at Elena. "Human. We lived outside of town, didn't bother anyone."

"Sure, freak with a heart of gold." Dean nodded.

"You want to call me monster, fine. But all we did was go into town. I go into the bank for five minutes. I come out, she's gone. And then I heard her scream." Elias exhaled sharply. "This... man had her pinned in the alley. I go to stop him, he pulls his gun, shoots me, then her. She died in my arms. Course, I don't die. The shots brought the Sheriff. Next thing I know, I'm in iron. That's why I want him just where he is… trapped, scared. I saved the best for last."

Elena stared at the man in horror as Dean turned to the deputy.

"Is that true?" he asked.

The man refused to answer.

"So tell me… are you really willing to die to protect this piece of filth?" Finch demanded.

"Honestly, I could care less about him. He's a dick and a coward." Dean said simply.

"Hey!" the deputy protested.

"But this ain't about him. I know what you are." Dean said to him.

"Really?" Elias asked, his interest peaked.

"Yeah. So... I got to kill you." Dean sighed.

"Well, if you know what I am, then you know you can't."

Elias launched out and grabbed the deputy's gun where his holster was hanging on the wall. He quickly shot the deputy.

"Wow, I should've seen that coming." Dean said, shaking his head.

Elena grabbed Dean's arm as Elias pointed the gun at him. They disappeared from the room before he could fire the shot. As soon as they landed behind the jail, she felt the familiar pull.

"Sam is calling me. I'll be back." she said quickly before disappearing.

Elena reappeared about a minute later with Sam on her arm.

"Dean!" the younger brother stumbled forward.

"Hey, where's Colt?" Dean asked.

"He's not coming." Sam said.

"What?!" he demanded, staring at Elena, who shrugged.

"But he sent this." Sam handed Dean the Colt.

"Ohh. Hello, beautiful." he breathed, staring at the gun reverently.

"All right." Sam said, glancing around.

"Come on." Dean said as they began to sneak around the jail to the town center.

* * *

"Are you sure?" Castiel asked, glancing up at Bobby.

"Well, we can't just strand those idjits in Deadwood, can we?" Bobby replied, glancing at him warily.

"The risks..." the angel began.

"Just..." the hunter interrupted him. "… don't explode me."

* * *

"Get out here, Finch!" Dean yelled as he walked out onto the road.

"What are you doing?!" Sam and Elena hissed from where they were at the wall.

"Come on! Let's do this!"

The Phoenix walked out.

"So, this is how you want to die. Fine."

They walked out to the road and faced each other in true western showdown fashion. The clock struck once as the men stared at each other. Suddenly they both drew their weapons and Elena flinched when she heard a shot go off. They stared with wide eyes as Finch looked down at the bullet wound in his chest. He screamed loudly as he burned up, falling to the ground in a pile of ashes. Dean stood there holding the smoking Colt with a look of cool, Clint Eastwood-worthy satisfaction on his face.

"Yippee-ki-yay, mother..."

"Dean! The ashes!" Sam shouted when he noticed that the clock was striking noon.

Sam and Dean both ran for the pile of ashes. Just as they slid down to collect them, they realized that they were no longer in the dusty road in Surnise. Rather, they were in Bobby's study. Dean was on his knees. He held up the empty glass bottle, looking defeated.

"You gotta send us back." he said immediately, standing up.

Castiel turned his hand and glared at him for a moment.

"Dean, look at him. He's fried." Sam sighed.

"I never want to do that again." Cas said.

"Bobby, you…" Dean asked, glancing over at the older hunter.

"I'm still kickin', Annie Oakley." He said from where he looked pale in his chair. "Be back good as new in... a decade or two."

"And we screwed the pooch. Bobby, I'm sorry." Dean said, shaking his head.

Sam glanced around with a confused look.

"Where's Elena?" he asked.

* * *

Elena collapsed to the ground in the dusty road, breathing heavily and wincing with the pain in her head. It had taken her a lot to resist Castiel's pull to yank her back to their own time. Now she was still there in Sunrise, Wyoming in 1861.

"Are you all right?" a woman asked, rushing up to her.

"I'm fine." Elena breathed, clambering up to her feet.

She was shocked that she'd ever managed to pull it off. Cas must have been weakened for her to be able to do such a thing.

"Thank you." she sighed before making to walk off so that she could be alone.

She had to find a quiet, empty place so that she could concentrate. She knew that the only way that she was going to pull this off was summoning all of her grace. The only thing was, the last time she did that, she almost killed herself. She sincerely hoped that this time would go better.

* * *

Elena landed in the outskirts of a camp of tents with a gasp. She looked up to see people walking around inside of the campground. Luckily it was nighttime so they didn't notice her. She inspected a few women's outfits before closing her eyes and mimicking them. The material was coarse on her skin and she felt uncomfortable with a heavy cloth covering her hair but she ignored it, proceeding into the camp. There was celebration all around her. The people were happy. At first, she found that the language that they spoke all around her meant nothing to her. It took her several minutes to realize that she knew exactly what they were saying.

One word repeated many times stuck out to her. Jael.

"Excuse me." she stopped another woman. "Is Jael here?"

Elena was shocked to hear another language coming out of her mouth. She felt the buzzing of grace inside of her and assumed it had something to do with her speaking.

"Of course. She is at the center. She is being celebrated. She has saved us all." The woman said, smiling brightly before walking off.

Elena walked towards the center of the camp and found that most of the party was there. People were dancing and feasting and generally celebrating. She saw a woman sitting on a stone smiling around at everything with a gleeful look. Gabriel's words flashed through her mind.

"_The opposing army's leader, Sisera, was fleeing from the battle. Israel was winning and he knew it. He fled as far as he could and found a tent. Jael, left alone by her husband, who was fighting, saw him and recognized him. She invited him into her tent, promising him safekeeping. She gave him blankets and milk from goatskin. When he sent her out to keep watch and to tell anyone who came by that no one was inside, he fell asleep. Instead of watching for soldiers to come, Jael retrieved a tent peg and a hammer. She walked into the tent and fearlessly drove the peg into his temple, burying it into the ground. Then she went and found the soldiers who were searching for Sisera and led them to his body. She was celebrated as a heroine for her actions."_

Elena walked forward, avoiding the touch of the people, aware of their lack of bathing. She approached the rock hesitantly, watching the woman who was meant to be her ancestor.

"Jael?" she questioned softly.

The woman's dark eyes turned on her. She was beautiful, there was no denying that.

"Who are you?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"My name is Elena…" she cut off when she saw the chain sitting on Jael's neck. "I need to speak with you… in private."

The woman stared at her.

"Why would I follow you, a woman I do not know, and speak with you?" Jael asked.

Elena reached for her own chain hesitantly, pulling it out of her dress to show the woman. Jael's eyes widened as she touched her own, identical pendent.

"Because it is important." Elena said.

The woman stood and dragged her off into an empty tent.

"I knew that you would come." She breathed, her eyes roaming over Elena.

Elena stared at her.

"How?" she asked.

"I dreamt of it." Jael said in an awestruck voice.

"I do not have long. I need answers. Where did you get this?" Elena demanded, gesturing to the pendant.

Jael looked down at it with confusion.

"My mother." She admitted.

"Where did she get it from?" Elena asked desperately.

"A man." Jael said simply.

"What man?" she asked.

"I do not know. I was not there." she said.

Elena made a frustrated noise, shaking her head.

"Go back to your celebrating. Forget that I was here. You will never see me again." She said.

She turned and ran out of the tent, not stopping until she got outside of the campgrounds. When she stopped, she felt a twinging pain in her head. She ignored, it, summoning her grace again.

* * *

When she landed, she felt more pain in her head. Blood leaked out of her nose and she felt like she was going to throw up. The time travelling was beginning to have it's effect on her. It was still dark outside. She glanced around to see that they were actually in an ancient city. She heard voices and turned the corner to see a man and a young woman speaking. Elena hid in the shadows.

"What is it that you want more than anything in this world?" he asked, his voice sending chills down Elena's spine.

She squinted through the darkness and saw that the young woman looked too much like Jael not to be her mother.

"A good life for my future children. It is what I desire above all else." the woman said.

"I can promise you that. I can give your child a name that will last through the ages as a name to be desired above all else." the man said.

"What do I have to do?" the woman asked.

"Just give me a kiss. I will collect your debt many years from now. Your grandchild's grandchild's grandchild will be long dead by then." He said.

Elena watched with horror, knowing that she was witnessing a deal with a demon. She wanted to cry out, to stop it, but she was frozen in fear. The woman nodded, leaning in to kiss him.

"Wait…" he caught her before she could run off after the kiss. "Another sign of our deal."

He held up a glinting chain with a pendant on the end and Elena recognized it, touching the one around her neck.

"This will be passed through the females of your family. On and on and on." he said.

She took it with an awestruck expression, nodding before she ran off. The man let out a chuckle and turned, staring straight at Elena.

"You aren't hidden that well, darling." He said and she realized that he was speaking English now.

Light from the moon caught on his eyes and she gasped, stumbling away when she saw the yellow glint of them. Elena was too weak to fight and she didn't even have her dagger. She chose to leave it at home since the only weapon certain of helping them was the Colt when it came to the Phoenix. She wished that she would have rethought that decision. Elena did the only thing that she could think of doing. She turned to run. Suddenly she was dragged backwards by an invisible force and thrown into the wall. It crumbled around her as she fell to her knees. The demon dragged her up and shoved her against another wall.

"Oh yes, I know exactly who you are. You stink of the future. Did you travel back in time to see little old me? To see your lineage begin with a deal with a demon?" he asked, smirking at her.

Elena remained quiet, glaring at him. He shook his head, clicking his tongue.

"I suppose I'll just have to get it out of you another way."

Elena watched with horror as he pressed a hand to her forehead. She felt him invading her mind but she was too weak to stop him. It felt like a white hot poker in her brain and the only thing keeping her from screaming her lungs out was his hand over her mouth.

"Ah… that is really too bad. You recognize me, don't you?" he said, drawing away.

She was slumped against the wall with tears pouring from her eyes.

"It is a sad thing, to see when one dies. Especially since it's by the hand of your lover. I suppose no one can last forever. Not even me. Say my name for me, darling. Just once." He said, stroking her cheek.

"Azazel." She gasped out.

"Good girl." he pulled away and slammed his fist across her face.

"I can't believe that I come here to make a simple deal and wind up with the lover girl of the hunter who will kill me. Isn't life tricky?" he asked.

Elena fell to her knees when he let her go and he aimed a kick at her ribs, causing her to crumple over with a cry of pain.

"So… I can't change this future… seems pretty set in stone. So if I can't beat 'em… maybe I'll just beat their guardian."

A few more punches later in her face and abdomen, Elena was slumped over in his arms as he pushed her up to a kneeling position. Blood was pooling in her mouth as she coughed it up. It was also running down her face from a gash on her forehead.

"Come on, hang tough with me. I want to see this through before I send you back to your boyfriend bruised and bloody. It brings me immense satisfaction to imagine the look on his face." he said.

"Fuck you." Elena hissed at him.

He yanked her head back by her hair and glared at her through his demonic yellow eyes. She grinned up at her attacker, her lips stretching over her bloodstained teeth.

"What are you going to do… kill me?" she laughed.

"I haven't decided yet." He said, raising his hand to place it against her head.

He began muttering low Latin words and she felt excruciating pain wracking through her body as if her very grace was being ripped from her chest. She threw her head back and screamed, her eyes opening wide as she stared into the deep yellow depths of his sadistic eyes. Suddenly he was thrown backwards into the wall. He stared at her with shock as he righted himself.

"How did I not sense that angel in you? What have you been doing?" he asked.

"None of your damn business, asshole." She snapped before she closed her eyes and concentrated at heavily as she could.

* * *

Elena finally landed with a thump on her knees in the middle of the study. She felt the blood leaking out of her nose and her head seared with pain. Her body slumped to the side and she pressed her bleeding hand to her forehead was bleeding as well. She heard a shout of surprise and concern and hands were suddenly on her. They hauled her up as she sagged limply and helped her to the couch. Voices drifted around her as she struggled to pick her head up and look at the people around her. Faces swam in her vision and she blinked until she could see them. Dean, Sam, and Cas were all staring at her. Bobby was backed away a few steps watching with concern as well.

"Where the hell were you?" Dean asked, looking at her clothing with confusion.

She smiled slightly, showing the blood that was on her teeth as it dripped out of her mouth.

"Somewhere very important."

"What were you thinking?" Castiel demanded and she heard anger and fear in his voice.

"I had to know. I had to know everything." She wheezed, feeling like she was about to pass out any second.

Suddenly two hands put themselves on her face. She found herself staring deep into Castiel's blue eyes.

"You look at me!" he demanded in his gravelly voice and she heard the fury in them with a hint of fear behind it.

She wondered what could possibly make the angel so afraid.

"Cas, I'm tired." Elena whispered, her hand lifting to slide on his wrist so that she could push away from him and lie on the couch to sleep.

"No." he growled, putting his hands on her shoulders and pulling her closer to him so that their faces were inches apart.

Her eyes opened again and she was surprised at him being so insistent.

"You cannot do that! You are not invincible, Elena Gilbert! You are still partly human! If I can barely send you through time as a full-blooded angel, what makes you think that you can jump through it for an entire two days without consequences?" Castiel demanded, glaring at her.

"I was just…"

"I don't care!" He cut her off angrily. "You cannot do that!"

He shook her a little bit and she let out a slight cry of pain.

"Hey, Cas…" Dean began with a worried look.

"She must understand!" the angel snapped, throwing Dean's hand off and pulling Elena's head up to look at him.

Her lower lip trembled as she felt the emotional and physical exhaustion of the past few days.

"Why are you yelling at me?" she whimpered as her eyes turned into watery pools with the tears that were filling them.

"Because you could have killed yourself in a different place and time and we couldn't find you!" he stressed and she saw that the fear that was in his voice was fear for her life.

It was the same fear she saw reflected in Dean, Sam, and Bobby's eyes.

"I'm sorry." She murmured, a tear sliding down her cheek. "I just had to know. I needed to know why she was connected to me. I had to figure out why she wouldn't leave me alone. It's more horrible than I thought."

"She? Eve?" Dean said, furrowing his brow.

Confusion formed on each of their faces but they looked more sympathetic for her. Cas slowly pulled away, keeping her upright until Dean swooped in and picked her up bridal style, allowing her to lay her head on his chest. No one said a word as he carried her to the stairs and up to the bedroom.

"I'm sorry Dean." She whispered.

He sighed, pushing the door open with his foot. She was asleep before he laid her on the bed. Her cheek was swelling up with a bruise. Before he had to walk down and ask, he turned to see Castiel walking in. He sat on the bed beside her and pressed his hand to her forehead. Within moments, all of her wounds were healed.

"Take care of her. We'll get answers later when she wakes up." The angel said, putting his hand on Dean's shoulder before walking out.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door as Dean was walking down to get a glass of water. He watched as Sam walked to it. A delivery man was standing there with a wooden box.

"Is there a Sam Winchester here?" he asked.

"Who's asking?" Sam said, staring at him as Dean watched from the doorway to the kitchen.

"Look, this is nuts… me and a couple guys made a bet. So... this thing's been laying around the office since... ever! Uh, with a note on it saying to bring it here today. It's from a-a Samuel Colt?" the young man stammered.

Sam's eyes widened and he glanced back at Dean before reaching out to grab it.

"Yeah. Yeah, yeah, that's… that's mine. Great. Thanks."

He closed the door before the delivery man could say anything else. He carried it to Bobby's desk and Dean, Cas, and Bobby watched him opened it. He pulled out his cell phone first, remembering that he'd left it with Colt. It was long dead by now.

"Dear Sam, I got this address and date off your thingamajig…" Sam chuckled. "… and I thought the enclosed might come in handy. Regards, Samuel Colt."

Sam pulled the bottle of ashes out of the boxes, smiling happily.

"Is that what I think it is?" Bobby asked.

"Ashes of a Phoenix. You know what this means?" Dean was smiling.

"Yeah, I didn't get a soulonoscopy for nothing." Bobby nodded.

"Yes." Dean said, nodding. "And... it means we take the fight to her."

* * *

**Author's Note: Wow, I hope that chapter wasn't confusing. At least I hope the Elena parts weren't confusing. Sorry about how I wrote Azazel. I just really didn't want to have to write him with historically accurate words. It would have been a lot of work and time that I didn't have. I hope you don't hate me for it. Next chapter, the group goes after Eve and Elena tells someone everything that she learned on her little trip into the past.**

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	24. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to Nyssandria, Thenchick, CherrySin, RHatch89, TheElegantFaerie, Dean Winchester Rocks, xxPaige23xx, SwanQueen4055, DrawingMyHeartOut, RippahGoneWolf, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, chiwi, and JMHUW for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. There is very important information at the end of the chapter so make sure you read it.**

**2. I didn't mention this before because I kept forgetting but thank you so much to getting us to over 300 reviews on this story. You are all amazing and you have made this my best project up to date. **

**3. Elena's outfits are on my profile.**

**4. Enjoy.**

* * *

Dean sighed as he sat beside the bed. It had been an entire day without a single hint of Elena waking up. Castiel, Sam, and Bobby were all out trying to find Eve so that they could gank her but he stuck stubbornly by her bed. The angel told him that it was normal that her body readjusts itself by sleeping. It had happened before, after all. He was concerned, though. She wasn't just drained from the time hopping. She was beat up. Something got to her and he wanted to know what. He wasn't sure what he would do when he found out, lecture her or go find whatever it was and kick it's ass. Elena sighed, murmuring in her sleep as she turned over to face away from him.

He sighed, reaching out to take her hand and press a kiss to it. At this point, he wasn't nearly as angry with her. He just wanted her to be okay.

"Still nothing?" Sam asked as he walked into the room.

Dean shook his head, staring at her still pale face.

"Found something on that dress she was wearing though." He said, nodding at the pile of clothing in the corner.

"Speaking of… what is that… ancient Israelian clothing? Did she really go that far back? No wonder she's so messed up." Sam commented, sitting on the corner of the bed.

"Why don't you go smell it?" Dean said.

"No thanks." Sam said, wrinkling his nose.

Dean gave him a look and he sighed. He picked up the dress and took one whiff of it before his eyes widened and he looked over at his brother.

"That's sulfur." He said.

He nodded wordlessly, looking back at Elena.

"What the hell happened?" Sam wondered.

"I don't know but I can't just sit here anymore." he grumbled, jumping up and turning to walk out of the room.

"Dean…" Sam sighed.

"Why didn't she tell us, huh? Why did she have to keep whatever the hell is going on from us? Why did she have to scare us and make us think that she might be dead?" he yelled.

Sam stared at him sympathetically but someone appearing in the room cut off his reply.

"What did she do now?" Gabriel sighed.

* * *

"_Come to me, Elena."_

_She was kneeling on the ground, her hands over her ears._

"_Go away." She murmured miserably._

"_You won't be able to resist me forever. I am in your head. I will bring you to me and I will show you everything. All that you seek to know, I will tell you. Why won't you just come to me?" Eve asked, kneeling next to her. "I only want to help you. You were meant to be mine. Those angels and those demons stole you from me. Come to me, I'll give you everything."_

_Elena lifted her head and glared into the woman's eyes._

"_I will kill you before I ever join your side." She snapped._

* * *

Gabriel sighed, running his hand through his hair. They were sitting in the living room. Dean and Sam had explained everything that happened and Gabriel, in return, explained everything to do with what he'd been doing with Elena, including the necklace and her geneology. They'd been angry, at first, to learn that he was helping her keep it a secret. But then they pushed that to the side because of their concern for her.

"I told her not to. I refused to take her back in time. If I knew that you were all going back, I would've gone with her. At least then…"

"It wasn't up to you." a voice interrupted him.

They all looked up to see Elena standing in the doorway to the study. Her skin was pale and her hair was hanging limply around her face. She was still wearing the clothes that Dean helpfully changed her into, knowing that they would be more comfortable than the coarse dress that she was wearing before. Dean moved to stand up but she waved him off.

"I know that you all care. I know that you're all fiercely protective of me and that's fine. But this is my life, my history, and I get to decide. I'm not a child and I'm certainly not a porcelain doll. You don't get to make decisions for me. If you had trusted me to know what was best for me, I wouldn't have had to figure out a way to do it myself." She said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Dean opened his mouth to say something but he was silenced with a look from her.

"I am almost twenty-one years old. I'm not a child. I have lived lifetimes in the past few years. I have lived through the deaths of those closest to me, I've been to heaven and hell. I was there when you fought against angels and I was there when we defeated the devil. So please, stop understimating me. Stop trying to keep me from pursuing my own past. You have no right, any of you." she ranted.

"I know that you love me and you don't want to see me hurt but if you were in my position and you were being used as I am, you would want to find out all of this as well. So please just trust me. If you trust me to let me do whatever it takes to figure out what is going on with me and my past, I promise that I will not run off on my own anymore." she sighed.

They all exchanged wary looks.

"Okay." Dean finally said.

She looked at Sam, Bobby, and Gabriel and they all nodded as well.

"Thank you." Elena sighed.

Dean finally stood up and gathered her in his arms, pressing his face in her hair.

"You just scared us. I thought I lost you." he murmured.

"I'll always return to you, Dean Winchester." She replied, looking up at him.

"What did you figure out?" Gabriel asked.

Elena sighed, turning to them.

"That can wait. Have you found Eve?" she asked.

"We're working on it." Sam said.

"We need to do it soon. She's taking a starring role in my dreams. If it continues, she might find a way to take over me again. We need to get to her and we need to kill her." Elena said.

"Elena… if you found something out in the past…"

"That is not a main concern right now, Dean. If we kill Eve, it's over, okay? We won't have any big bad to worry about. We can sit down and dicuss my geneology for years if you want. We need to kill this bitch and then we can talk." She said, looking up at him.

He could see the desperation and fear in her eyes and found himself agreeing with her.

"Right. Let's find this bitch." He agreed.

* * *

**ONE WEEK LATER**

Dean was concentrating heavily as he made the shotgun shells, tuning out everything around him until Sam and Bobby came clomping down the stairs.

"Hey. How you doing?" Sam asked.

"Five shells. That's how I'm doing." He answered, turning to face them when he finished the last one.

Well…" his younger brother sighed. "… you know, it's a hell of a lot more than what we had last week."

"Maybe." He shrugged.

The annoyance behind his reply didn't escape their notice.

"Meaning?" Bobby questioned.

"Meaning I just had myself a little mishap a few minutes ago, and, uh, well, here, look."

He pinched some of the remaining ash and rubbed it on his arm.

"Whoa." Sam said warily.

Dean glanced up at them when nothing happened, his annoyance clear on his face.

"Huh." Bobby commented, not knowing what else to say.

"I mean this stuff is supposed to burn the bejeezus out of Eve, doesn't even give me a sunburn." He said.

"Lore says it works." The older hunter shrugged.

"That's always reliable." Dean scoffed, taking a rag and rubbing the ash from his arm before wiping his hands off as he stood to walk and stand on the other side of the room, stretching his legs.

"Well, you know what? Maybe it's like, uh… maybe it's like iron or silver. You know? Hurts them, not us." Sam suggested hopefully.

"Maybe…" Dean sighed. "… but a fat lot of good it does us 'til we find the bitch."

Elena chose that moment to appear, dropping into the chair that Dean vacated.

"The Originals haven't heard anything. Katherine hasn't heard anything. Gabriel doesn't know a thing. Ellen and Jo haven't heard anything. Where the hell is she?" she snapped.

They'd sent her out asking all of their contacts to see if they knew anything. Meanwhile, while they were stuck sitting at home, Elena's dreams were getting more vivid and she even accidently punched Dean when he tried to wake her up. That was when she stopped sleeping. She hadn't done so in three days and it was showing with the bags underneath her eyes and her foul mood. They all gave her a sympathetic look, knowing that she was affected the most by their lack of information.

"I'm still looking, but I'm thinking maybe it's time you made a call." Bobby said, glancing at Dean.

He stared at them, opening his arms.

"Why has it always got to be me that makes the call, huh? It's not like Cas lives in my ass. The dude's busy!"

They all heard the sound of feathers and Sam and Bobby both smirked when the angel so happened to appear directly behind Dean. Even Elena cracked a small smile at the irony.

"Cas, get out of my ass!" Dean growled.

"I was never in your…"

Castiel cut off, staring at the strange on Dean's face.

"Have you made any progress in locating Eve?" he sighed.

"Well we were gonna ask you about that." Bobby

"No, I've looked, but she's hidden from me. She's hidden from all angels." Cas said.

"Awesome." Dean grumbled.

"So no one knows anything. A monster this big, how is it that no one has any clue where she could be?" Elena said frustratedly.

Cas avoided looking at her. Ever since she'd put herself in danger by remaining behind and jumping through time he hadn't so much as spoken to her. He never even gave her a chance to explain what she was doing. That was why all of the praying to Cas honors went to Dean lately.

"You know, what we really need is an inside man." Sam said.

"What do you mean?" Dean asked.

"Something with claws and sympathy."

"Like a friendly monster?" Elena asked. "Haven't we tried that with the Originals and Katherine?"

"I'm talking monster from our side of the tracks."

"Those are in short supply these days, don't you think?" Dean scoffed.

"Sure, but we've met one or two, right? I mean, there's bound to be someone."

"Maybe." Dean said skeptically.

"So we can find one." Sam said.

Cas squinted around at them for a moment before disappearing.

"Okay, I guess we know his opinion on the subject." Dean said.

"Don't worry. It's not you, it's me." Elena said, standing up. "I'm going to go take a shower."

* * *

When she walked back down, they were all spread around the cellar. Sam and Bobby were sitting and reading. Dean was leaning against the cabinet. She walked to him and he spread his arms, allowing her to walk into them and lay her head against his chest. They heard the sound of wings moments later and turned to see Cas holding the arm of a dirty young woman with wide eyes.

"Lenore." Sam breathed, standing up.

Elena pulled away from Dean as the woman tried to run off. Him and Sam blocked her way as her and Bobby came running up behind them.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Hey, hey. Lenore, stop. Look, we're happy you're here." Sam said carefully.

"Been a long time. You remember us?" Dean asked warily.

"I remember." She nodded as she pressed herself into a corner.

Her voice was hoarse and her eyes a little wild.

"Your hunter friend almost killed me."

That was when Elena figured out that this woman was not human. She glanced back at Cas who was watching them with narrowed eyes.

"Well if it makes you feel any better, uh, he turned into a vampire and I chopped his head off." Sam said.

"Yeah. With razor wire. Wicked." Dean nodded with a grin.

"Well, that's something." Lenore sighed. "What's going on? Why am I here?"

"Well, um, that's Cas." Sam pointed to the angel. "He's our friend. And this is Elena and Bobby."

She waved at the woman, certain that Dean and Sam wouldn't be talking to her like this if she wasn't a friend.

"And we need to talk to you. About Eve." Sam said.

"Eve? I have nothing to say about Eve." She snapped, looking terrified.

"You sure about that?" Dean asked skeptically.

"I'm trying to stay away from her, believe me." she said.

"Where's your nest?" Sam asked.

"Gone. They couldn't fight it anymore. It's her voice, in our heads. What it does to us. So they left. Started killing again." Lenore informed them.

"But not you."

"Don't look so impressed." She scoffed. "I was hiding in a basement. Not exactly Club Med. You don't know how hard it is… not to give in. Everyone gives in."

"Alright, so this psychic two-way you've got going, does that mean you know where Mom's camped out?" Dean asked.

"You've got to be kidding me. You want me to tell you where she is? You do know she could be listening to us right now. I might as well be a video camera. What are you thinking?" Lenore demanded.

They all exchanged wary glances.

"So we don't have the element of surprise, we're still going in." Bobby said with certainty and they found that they all agreed.

"You're crazy. I can't help you." she said.

"Can't or won't?" she hesitated at Sam's question. "Look, it's clear as day. You still give a crap. You don't wanna kill. And don't want this whole planet dead."

Lenore's eyes flickered between them.

"You actually believe you can stop her?" she murmured.

"Just tell us where she is." Sam said pleadingly.

"Grants Pass, Oregon." Lenore sighed. "And now she knows you're coming."

"Well let's go see." Bobby nodded and they all moved to walk off.

"Hold on. I didn't tell you this out of the goodness of my heart. I need something." Lenore said, stopping them.

"What?" Sam asked hesitantly.

She stepped forward, staring between Sam and Dean.

"Kill me." she breathed.

"Lenore." Sam sighed, his brow furrowed.

"Look, we'll lock down down 'til this whole thing's over, okay? Witness protection, you'll be safe." Dean assured her.

"You don't get it, it's not about that. I'm dangerous. I hear her voice all the time." the vampire argued.

"You're not like the rest of them." Sam said.

"I'm exactly like them. I fed. I couldn't help it. The girl couldn't have been more than 16, Sam. I'll do it again. I can't stop, not anymore. You have to. Please." She begged.

"Lenore…" Sam began to argue but suddenly a hand came down on her head and light began to pour out of her eyes.

Dean and Sam hid their eyes but Elena watched as Castiel smote her, killling her instantly. The body fell to the ground and they looked up at him in shock.

"We needed to move this along." He said simply.

* * *

Elena was holding Dean's hand as they teleported onto the sidewalk in the town square of Grants Pass Oregon. They glanced around with confusion at the normal-looking town. Dean and Sam both had bags full of weapons.

"Well, I was expecting more Zombieland, less Pleasantville." Dean commented.

"Just because it looks quiet, don't mean it is, especially if she's got a clue were coming." Bobby reminded them.

"Yeah, well if she is here I'm glad we've got Smitey McSmiterton and Smitey McSmiterton Jr on our squad." Dean said, gesturing to Cas and Elena, both of whom stared back with furrowed brows. "Alright, where do we start?"

"I'm gonna need a computer." Bobby said.

They all knew that meant that they needed a place to set up and they immediately caught sight of the diner across the road. They were settled at a table, Elena sitting on the end with the males sitting on either side, Bobby next to Dean and Cas next to Sam. All of them ordered food except for Cas. Elena kept glancing around with an uncomfortable look that didn't go unnoticed by Dean. The rest seemed to be engrossed in what they were doing.

"Alright. I finally got the police database, no thanks to this." Bobby grumbled, holding up the iPad. "I asked for a computer."

He aimed a glare at Sam.

"It is a computer." The younger Winchester said as he took a bite of salad.

"No, a computer has buttons." Bobby shot back.

"Can I get you anything else?" Their waitress said as she passed the table.

"No, we're good thanks." He glanced at Elena and sighed as she shifted once more. "What's wrong?"

"I just have a really weird feeling. Like a tingly feeling in my mind. It's… unpleasant." She admitted, rubbing her temples.

"Maybe it's cause Eve's here in town." Dean suggested, taking her hand and rubbing the back of it with his thumb..

"Anything?" Sam asked, glancing at Bobby.

"Oh, nickel and dime stuff, nothing weird. Basically dead end. You think Vampira was lying?" he asked, looking up at them.

"I'll search the town. Give me a moment." Cas said.

They nodded and all went back to eating. A few moments later, Cas was still sitting there staring off into space.

"Cas, we can still see you." Dean informed him and the angel fidgited uncomfortably.

"Yeah, I'm still here." He said, his brow furrowing.

"Okay, well you don't have to wait on us, you…"

Cas cleared his throat and closed his eyes, concentrating further as they all stared at him except for Bobby, who was still searching the news.

"Well now it just looks like you're pooping." Dean informed the angel.

"Something's wrong." Cas said, looking slightly panicked.

"What, are you stuck?" Dean asked.

"I'm blocked. I'm powerless." He said, his eyes going to Elena for the first time in a week.

They communicated to her clearly and she looked around.

"You're joking?" Dean said as she pulled her fork out of the napkin it was nestled in.

"Something in this town, is, uh, it's affecting me. I assume it's Eve." Castiel said.

She laid the fork on the table and hovered her hand over it with Sam watching closely.

"So wait, Mom's making you limp?" Dean questioned.

Cas sighed.

"Figuratively, yes."

"Not just Cas." Elena said as she concentrated on the fork and nothing happened. "Me too."

They all looked between the two with wide eyes.

"How?" Dean said.

"I don't know, but she is." Cas said with frustration in his voice.

"Well, that's great, because without your power, you're basically just a baby in a trenchcoat." Dean snapped at the angel, knowing better than to say anything like that to Elena.

Cas gave him an upset look before turning to stare out the window.

"I think you hurt his feelings." Sam whispered as Dean sighed.

"I got something here, maybe. Had to go federal go to get it. Call went out from the local office to the CDC last night." Bobby said, catching their attention.

Cas glanced over at Elena again and his eyes once again clearly told her that this was not good.

"About what?" Sam asked.

"A Dr Silver called in an illness he couldn't identify. Patient's a twenty-five year old, African-American, name… Ed Bright."

He turned the iPad to show them the screen with Ed Bright's driver's license on it.

"Well that's not much to go on." Dean pointed out.

"Well its our only lead, so…" Bobby trailed off.

"So beggars can't be choosers, right? I get it." Dean sighed. "Alright, let's finish up."

He waved down the waitress to give them their ticket so that they could get out and start looking for this doctor.

* * *

They separated, Dean, Cas, and Elena going to the doctor's office while Bobby and Sam went to his house. They walked up to a woman just as she was locking the door.

"Excuse me. Hi, uh, i-is Dr Silver in today?" Dean pointed over at Cas. "My friend is very sick."

Cas stared at him for a moment before nodding.

"I have a, uh… painful burning sensation."

Elena and Dean both looked over at him with barely contained amusement at the symptom he chose to inform the woman of.

"Oh, well, he's out. Sorry." She said, looking sympathetic and slightly disgusted.

"Do you happen to know here he is?" Elena asked.

"He hasn't called in." the woman glanced over at Cas. "You might want to find yourself some ointment."

They nodded at her as she turned to walk off. Dean faced them once she was gone.

"What kind of doctor calls the CDC and then goes AWOL the very nest day?"

Elena shrugged as Cas simply stared.

"Let's have a look, shall we?"

They walked to the door and Dean pulled out his lock-picking tools, bending over to jimmy the lock open.

"Is this gonna take a long time?" Cas sighed after a few moments.

Dean stopped and turned his head to shoot the angel a look. As he was turning back to focus on the lock, his eyes caught sight of something. He straightened up and stared for a moment.

"What is it?" Cas and Elena said.

Dean didn't answer, walking forward and squatting down to touch a drop of liquid on the ground. He lifted his finger to show them the scarlet liquid on it. The door in front of them had blood on the doorknob and it led to a shed. Dean stood and they stood out of the way as he kicked it open. They peeked in as he walked in and uncovered a body wrapped in plastic. Ed Bright was underneath it, dead and smelling horrible.

Dean gagged and withdrew.

"It's the patient Ed Bright." Cas informed them.

"Well what kind of doctor calls the CDC and then stashes the gooey corpse in the shed?" Dean asked, looking back at them with a disgusted look at the smell.

"I don't understand what's happening here." Cas snapped, sounding frustrated for good reason.

"Well, I know one thing about the body. We need some kerosene." Dean sighed.

* * *

Bobby and Sam were walking out of the house that had been abandoned with no sign of any of the family. Bobby held out a picture to Sam.

"Here, Dr Silver. Wife, two sons."

Sam took it as they glanced up to see a cop car pulling up.

"Uh oh." Bobby grumbled.

"Hi there." the sheriff said as he and another officer walked up to them.

"Hi." Sam replied.

"Who're you?"

They pulled their badges out and showed them to the two policemen.

"It Casual Friday, agents?" The sheriff questioned with a skeptical sound to his voice.

"We're on a case a few miles out. We got a call to come here." Sam informed him.

"So how about you, what's your business?" Bobby asked.

"Oh, Dr Silver's a friend of mine. Heard he didn't show up for work today, so I though I'd stop by, see if he's sick." He replied.

"Not sick. Missing." Bobby corrected him.

"Missing? Says who?" the sheriff asked, looking between them.

"Says me. Empty house, no bags packed, car's still in the driveway." Bobby told him.

"How'd you get on this?"

"Oh, it's a long story. Tell you what, why don't you put out an APB, we'll compare notes down at the station. Sound good?" Bobby suggested.

"Uh, yeah, yeah. Sure." The sheriff nodded, turning back to his squad car.

"Obliged." Bobby nodded at him as he left.

"Wow. Talk about talking out of your butt." Sam breathed as he drove away.

"Yeah. Just hurry, you idjit." Bobby said, turning to walk down the road.

* * *

They convened in front of Ed Bright's house.

"Oh. So we've got a missing doctor and an oozy patient, huh?" Dean said once they finished sharing the information they discovered.

"Yeah. Plot thickens." Sam said.

Elena and Cas were the only ones looking at the house and they were the only two who noticed something out of the ordinary about what was inside.

"Well let's go see what Ed's roommates have to say." Dean sighed.

"Does Ed Bright have a brother?" Cas asked.

"No, why?" Bobby said as they looked at him.

"Then that's not his twin." Elena said warily.

The other three turned to see an exact lookalike of Ed Bright standing in the window coughing.

"So what, shifter?" Sam said.

"I don't know what we're looking at." Bobby replied.

"Alright, Dean, Elena, and me are gonna go in. You two stay here and watch the door. If something comes out, shoot it." Sam said to Cas and Bobby.

"Yeah. Best guess… silver bullets." Dean nodded.

"I'm fairly unpractised with firearms." Cas said, stopping them.

They turned and Elena gave him a sympathetic look as Dean stared at him.

"You know who whines?" he said. "Babies."

Dean patted Cas' arm before they turned to walk into the house. When they broke in, all of their guns drawn, they turned to walk into the living room. All of them stopped short with wide eyes at what they saw. Copies of Ed Bright were sprawled everywhere, at least six of them. They all looked dead but they weren't oozy like the original was.

"Okay, don't touch anything." Dean said.

One of the Eds groaned and began moving.

"Hey, hey. Back here. Come here." They approached him slowly without touching him. "Hey, hey, hey."

The Ed coughed and hunched over.

"Hey Talk to us. What is it?" Elena said soothingly.

"Hey, Ed. Ed, what's going on?" Dean asked.

"What? I'm not Ed." The man said, coughing and groaning.

Sam reached out and grabbed his wallet from the table. He opened it to reveal a driver's license of a man named Marshall.

"What's wrong with me?" he asked.

"Uh, nothing. You're ok. You're okay, alright? We're gonna get you help." Sam assured him comfortingly.

"Let me ask you something. Do I… do all of us… do we look like Ed?" he choked out, staring between them as his body wracked with coughs and shudders.

"What? No, no. No, no, no, no, no, of course not. You, uh, you have a fever. You're hallucinating." Dean said.

"Marshall, Marshall. Hey, what happened here?" Elena asked, leaning towards him.

Both Sam and Dean reached out, pulling her backwards again.

"Am I gonna die?" he whimpered.

"No, you're not gonna die, okay? Now you need to talk to us. It's important." Sam said.

"Ed was feeling bad so I took him to the doctor." He coughed a few more times. "I think… now we're all sick."

"You think?" Dean said, glancing around.

"And before you got sick, before Ed got sick, did you do anything? Did you go anywhere? Hey, I need you to focus for me." Sam urged him.

"I don't know. Some bar." He answered weakly. "A bar on 8th Street.

"8th Street, um, did anything happen at the bar? Did you… did you see anything? Did you meet anyone?" Sam questioned.

Marshall launched into another coughing fit.

"An ambulance is on the way, okay?" Elena assured him.

"A girl." he finally said.

"A girl? Okay, and?" Dean demanded.

"A girl in white." Marshall informed them.

None of them had any question in their minds about who she was.

"Good, okay. What did the girl in white do? Marshall?"

The man began spitting up blood as he hunched over even more.

"Wh-wh-what did she do to Ed? Marshall?"

Marshall slouched over, his breathing stopping and his eyes turned glassy. Elena sighed, pushing herself up to a standing position along with the boys. When they walked out the door to the house, Bobby and Cas were waiting on the front lawn for them.

"I don't get it. What, a bunch of regular Joes wake up shifters? What the hell?" Dean said, shaking his head.

"Shifters usually run in families. This looks like an infection. Nobody touched nothing?" Bobby confirmed.

They all exchanged wary looks.

"Well I am bathing in Purell tonight." Dean informed them.

"So, he said they met a girl." Sam said.

"It's got to be Eve." Elena said confidently.

"But why would she do this?" Cas said.

"Mommy monster… make more." Bobby shrugged.

"No, no, no, no. Cas has got a good point. I mean if she's gonna make a shifter army, why make one that's sick, gooey and dying?" Dean questioned.

"Add that to the pile of Crap That Don't Make Sense." Bobby said.

"So should we hit the bar?" Sam suggested.

* * *

When they opened the unlocked doors to the bar, they stared at the scene in front of them with shock. Dead bodies were everywhere, at least thirty of them if not more. Blood was spattered all over the place.

"Well, the Sheriff's a moot, but still. You'd think he'd notice this many missing folks." Bobby said as they all side stepped the bodies as they looked around at them.

Dean and Elena knelt beside one of them. Dean picked up a napkin and used it to lift the lip. A set of fangs were pokign out of the gums.

"We got a vamp over here." Dean said.

Elena glanced down and noticed something strange. She lifted the arm and turned it so that Dean could see the spike protruding from the same body's wrist.

"Nope. Scratch that. We got a wraith." He said, staring at it with wide eyes.

"What the hell has teeth and a spike?" Elena wondered as they stood up.

They glanced over at Bobby.

"Never seen that in my life." he said, shaking his head.

"Oh, great. So Eve's making hybrids now?" Dean sighed as they stepped away from the body.

"Looks like." the older hunter said.

"Yeah, the question is why. I mean what does she want with the…" Dean cut off, looking down at the thing. "What do you call these?"

"Well, congrats. You discovered it. You get to name it." Bobby informed him as he turned away.

Dean thought about it for a moment as Elena stepped off to look for any clues as to what was going on.

"Jefferson Starships." He said.

Bobby, Sam, and Elena all looked at him with confusion.

"Huh, because they're horrible… and hard to kill." He said.

Elena smirked as Sam scoffed and shook his head. Bobby simply rolled his eyes and walked off.

"Looks like the whole bar has been turned into these…"

"Jefferson Starships." Dean interrupted his brother.

"Fine." Sam sighed. "But why are all the... Starships dead?"

"I can't say, but looks like they all burned up." Bobby said as he bent over one of them.

"Burned up, like?" Dean questioned as he and Elena walked towards the bar.

"Like a high fever, like the flu." Bobby replied.

Elena stepped behind the bar to find three more dead bodies.

"What the hell's going on here? Does every monster in this town have the motaba virus?"

Suddenly the Sheriff and two other cops entered with their guns drawn.

"Hands where I can see 'em!"

Elena dropped down to her knees and dragged Dean behind the bar with her. They went unnoticed since the cops were focusing on Bobby, Sam, and Cas.

"Now this is not what it looks like." the angel said.

"Look, we're the Feds." Bobby tried to convince them.

"Yeah? Well Feds are not allowed to do this. Cuff 'em. Turn around."

Elena and Dean peeked out as the three were led out of the bar. Cas turned his head at the last second to meet with their eyes before he was shoved out by the cop. When they heard the cars pull out, they emerged from behind the bar.

"Go break 'em out?" Elena asked.

"Sounds like our best bet." He replied, taking her hand and leading her out to take one of the many cars that were still sitting in the parking lot.

* * *

"Listen, if we can make a phone call, we can straighten this all out." Sam said as they were shoved into the deserted police station.

"Straighten out a massacre? I'd like to see you try." The Sheriff scoffed.

Sam turned his head in time to see the video footage on a screen. All three of the policemen's eyes were glowing white on the video. He planted his feet suddenly and snapped his head back, headbutting the Sheriff.

"J-Jefferson Starships!" he stuttered as he turned around to look at the surprised monster.

Cas was immediately thrown into the wall by the Starship escorting him. Before it could attack him, a machete cut through its throat, decapitating it. Dean stood behind as the head and body dropped to the ground. Sam kicked at the Sheriff as it tried to bite him. The one attacking Bobby had pushed him to the ground and was about to pounce on him when its head was cut off thanks to Elena. Dean grabbed the Sheriff and knocked him to the ground, raising the machete decapitate him as well.

"Dean, wait!" Sam stopped him.

Minutes later, the Sheriff was chained up with silver in the interrogation room. Bobby, Elena, and Cas were in there as Dean and Sams tood slightly outside looking in through the window.

"Well, I'll say this, you're the healthiest looking specimen I've seen all day." Bobby informed the man.

"I take my vitamins." The Sheriff chuckled.

"So you wanna tell us what's going on here? Hmm?"

The monster remained quiet, staring straight ahead.

"So you boys are, uh, Eve's cleaning crew, is that it? You, uh… you come around to clean up the bodies? Make sure the word doesn't get out, huh? Is that why you snatched up the doctor?" Bobby questioned.

The Sheriff sighed heavily.

You're so wasting your time. You stupid head of cattle." He laughed, shaking his head as blood ran down his cheek from a cut.

Sam and Dean both snapped their heads around when they heard something.

"More Starships." Dean said, walking off to investigate with his machete in his hand.

"Stay here." Sam said to Cas before walking to follow him.

They followed the splattering of blood on the wall that led them back to the cells. In one of the cells were two boys who were tied up and gagged. Sam immediately recognized them as they rushed up to the cell.

"You're Dr Silver's boys." He said.

The older one nodded as Dean ran off to find the keys.

"Alright, don't worry. We're gonna get you out of here, okay?"

They stared at him fearfully.

"Look. We're not gonna hurt you. My name is Sam. That's my brother, Dean." Sam said as Dean ran up with the keys and unlocked the cell.

"Those cops, they're not coming back… ever." He assured them.

They pulled the boys' gags off to allow them to speak.

"What are your names?" Sam asked.

"Joe. This is Ryan." The older one answered.

"Hey Ryan, how you doing?" Dean asked the younger boy.

He looked down without speaking.

"He won't talk, not since they came for us." Joe said.

"Alright, listen Joe. We're gonna get you out of those handcuffs. Um, but you understand what's going on around here, don't you?" Joe nodded in answer to Dean's question. "So first we've gotta make sure you're you."

"How you gonna do that?" he asked warily.

"Well there's a few, uh, dozen tests." Dean informed him. "Okay, let's get started."

* * *

Bobby lashed out and cut the Sheriff across the cheek with the silver knife he was holding. The Starship groaned and then laughed, shaking his head.

"You really think that's gonna make me talk?" he asked.

"Something will." Bobby promised him.

They heard shuffling outside and Elena and Cas peeked out to see Dean walking back in.

"Got a couple of hungry human boys here. C'mon guys." He led them away from the dead Starships to sit in two chairs.

Elena walked up with Cas and she smiled at the boys.

"So you two never heard 'em talk... about a mother, or someone named Eve?" Sam asked.

Joe shook his head.

"It was just me and Ryan in there." he said.

"And your folks?" Dean asked.

"Cops said we were next. He said we were food." Joe said softly, looking down.

Elena squatted in front of him and took his hand.

"You have any other family?" she asked, sounding as soothing as she could.

"An uncle, in Merritt." He answered her, looking like he felt more comfortable talking to her.

"Merritt, what's that, like 15 miles outside of town? Okay. We'll get you there." Dean nodded.

"Dean, can I have a word?" Cas broke in.

Dean glanced at him and nodded, walking off. Elena and Sam could hear their not so quiet conversation so they were certain that the boys could as well.

"We need to find Eve now." The angel said in a no-nonsense voice.

"Yeah. Go. Me and Sam just gotta make a milk run." Dean agreed.

"We need your help here." Cas snapped.

"Hold your water. We'll be back in a few." He sighed.

"Dean, Dean. Millions of lives are at stakes here, not just two. Stay focused."

Dean stared at him with a look of disbelief.

"Are you kidding?" he demanded.

"There's a greater purpose here." Cas said with a clenched jaw.

"You know what, I-I'm getting a little sick and tired of the greater purposes, okay?" Dean said coldly. "I think what I'd like to do now is save a couple of kids. If you don't mind. We'll catch up."

He turned to walk back to them. Elena stood, taking his hand.

"You two take them. I'll stay here with Bobby and Cas and we'll figure out where she is." She said.

Dean nodded, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.

"Okay guys, let's go. C'mon."

They watched Dean walk out with Joe and Ryan, Sam following behind them.

* * *

"They won't take long." Elena said as Cas looked out the window at the dark night.

She was perched on a desk with her legs dangling off and Bobby was parked in a chair.

"You don't know that." he said with annoyance clear in his voice. "They may find more wayward orphans along the way."

"Oh, don't get cute." Bobby snapped, rolling his eyes.

Elena smirked, loving that he treated the angel just the same as he did the rest of them. Like an idjit.

"Right. Pardon me for highlighting their crippling and dangerous empathetic response with sarcasm." Cas said with air quotes around the last word. "It was a bad idea… letting them go."

Elena laughed, shaking her head. Castiel turned his cold eyes on her.

"You don't let Sam and Dean Winchester do shit." She reminded him.

"She's right. They got what they gotta. You know that." Bobby threw in. "Anyway, we want Eve, we need coordinates. So we can stand here bellyaching or we can go poke that pig 'til he squeals. Thoughts?"

Cas stared between them for a moment before turning to walk back into the interrogation room. They shared a look before sighing and standing up to follow him.

"You know, she can see you right now. And you're just making her mad." The Sheriff said once they entered behind the angel.

"Then tell the bitch to come get us." Elena snapped, crossing her arms over her chest as she leaned against the wall.

"I don't think you want her to do that. Because you know what'll happen? She'll turn your precious humans and kill your precious angel and then she'll keep you all to herself." he said, grinning at her.

Elena glared at him and opened her mouth to fire something back but Cas interrupted her.

"I need five minutes alone with him." he said.

Both her and Bobby looked at him hesitantly.

"What for? Cas, your batteries are dead." Bobby reminded him.

"Give me five minutes." He said again, glaring at the Starship.

"Alright, fine." Bobby sighed.

He took Elena's arm and pulled her out despite her protests. He pulled out a flask and handed it to her as they walked back to sit where they were before. They heard a few screams from the Sheriff echo around the station before he was quiet. Cas came walking out of the room moments later wiping blood off of his hands with more splattered on his white shirt.

"Eve's at 25 Buckley Street. You can call Sam and Dean." He said simply.

* * *

Dean and Sam came to the station to meet them once they got back. He glanced into the interrogation room to see that the Sheriff had been decapitated.

"Rigorous interrogation, huh?" he said.

"Well, we got a location. Now we just gotta get close enough to take a shot." Bobby said.

"Alright. Well, let's all take one."

Dean pulled out the five shells containing the phoenix ash. He handed them out to Sam, Bobby, and Cas first before handing her one of the last two as the other three loaded them into a shotgun.

"Load 'em up. Make 'em count." He said.

She took it and suddenly something occurred to her.

"I don't need this." she said.

"What… you don't have anything else." Dean argued.

"I know… but I can think of a better purpose for it." Elena said, grabbing Bobby's flask off of the desk.

* * *

They walked down the Buckley Street keeping an eye out for the address. When they saw it, they stopped short with an exasperated look.

"You gotta be kidding me. She's been in there the whole time?" Dean snapped.

"That must explain why I was feeling weird in there." Elena sighed.

"Why'd she ever let us in? Or out?" Sam wondered.

"Well there's one way to find out." Dean said, facing them.

"What, just stroll in? We don't know who's human or who's her." Bobby said.

"Well there's one way to draw her out. Me and Sam will go in." Dean said.

"Dean." Elena began to argue.

"You are the one who kept warning us that getting you too close to Eve could be bad news. Why is this any different? It's best if you stay outside. And if we don't get a shot off, you three better." He said.

She stared at him with a frustrated look even though she knew he had a point.

"That's the plan?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah. Pretty much." Dean nodded, still staring into her eyes.

Sam handed Bobby his bag as Elena leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

"Well at least it ain't complicated." Bobby grumbled as they turned to walk towards the diner.

Elena sighed heavily and leaned up against the car, rubbing her forehead as it began tingling again.

* * *

Sam and Dean entered the diner to see that a few people were inside. No sign of a woman in white. The younger Winchester cleared his throat as they sat down.

"Now what?" Dean wondered.

Sam pulled out his phone and turned on the video, scanning the restaurant with it.

"Crap. Crap, crap." He muttered.

"Starships?" Dean asked.

"Yeah." He sighed.

"Is there anybody in this diner that is not a flesh-eating monster?"

"Uh, me and you." Sam said, lowering his phone.

"Okay, well let's get the hell out of here." Dean said as they weren't counting on being outnumbered by the monsters.

"Shall we?" Sam nodded as they began to stand.

"Two specials, right?"

They looked across the bar to see a waitress setting down two plates in front of them.

"Uh, no, that's not for us. We were just headed out." Sam said.

"Now that would be rude, Sam." she said, narrowing her eyes at them as she placed her hands on the counter.

They exchanged a wary look.

"Let me guess. Eve." He said.

"Pleasure." Eve replied.

"Why don't we step outside. Chat?" Dean suggested.

"Why? This is private." She shrugged.

The Starships all jumped up, closing the blinds so that no one could see in through the windows. One of them walked over and took Dean's bag, opening it up. Eve pulled out one of the guns, smelling.

"Phoenix ash." She said with annoyance as she tossed it back in the bag. "I'm impressed. I bet you had to go a long way for that."

"You have no idea." Dean replied.

"Destroy these. Thank you." Eve said to a Starship.

He grabbed the bag and walked off as Sam and Dean stared at her warily.

"Relax. I'm not here to fight."

"No? Just to rally every freak on the planet, manipulate Elena to your side, bring in Khan Worms and-and half-assed spider-men, and dragons. Really, sister? Dragons?" Dean demanded.

"So I dusted off some of the old classics. I needed help." She said simply.

"With what?" Sam scoffed. "Tearing apart the planet?"

Her eyes glanced between them.

"You misunderstand me. I never wanted that. Not at first. I liked our arrangement."

"What arrangement?" Sam demanded.

"The natural order. My children turned a few of you, you hunted a few of them. I was happy." Eve said.

"Okay, so what changed?" Dean questioned.

"My children, no thanks to you, started getting kidnapped and tortured. Even my first borns. I was pushed into this. After all, a mother defends her children." She said with a slight smile.

"Really? You're gonna use the Mother of The Year defence? You?" Dean snapped.

"It happens to be true." She took in their unimpressed looks and sighed. "Know what? Maybe you'll believe it if I look a little more like this."

All of the sudden they were staring at their mother, Mary Winchester.

"Oh, you bitch." Dean said, so livid that he couldn't even look into her eyes.

"She died to protect you, didn't she? See. You understand a mother's love. I'm no different." Eve said, using their mother's voice.

"Alright, you know what? This conversation's over. If you're gonna kill us, kill us." Dean snapped, glaring up at her.

"You? No." she said, shaking her head. "It's Crowley I want dead."

"Well you're too late there… that little limey mook roasted months ago." the older brother informed her.

She squinted at them.

"Crowley's alive." She informed them.

"That's impossible." Sam said.

Eve scoffed. "I see his face through the eyes of every child he strings up and skins. Any idea why he's hurting my babies?"

"He wants Purgatory, right? Location, location, location." Dean shrugged.

She let out a laugh.

"Is that what he told you? It's about the souls."

"What about 'em?" Sam said.

"Their power, you simple little monkey. Fuel. Each soul a beautiful little nuclear reactor. Put 'em together, you have the sun. Now think what the king of hell could do with that vast, untapped oil well. How powerful he'd be. Now Crowley wants to siphon off my supply, and torture my children to do it? Okay fine. I'll quite playing nice. I'll turn you all. Every soul, mine. Let's see how hot his hell burns when everyone comes to me. He asked for it." she said simply.

"You know, last I checked, there were a few billion of us. That plan might take a while." Dean said.

"What exactly do you think I'm doing here? I'm building the perfect beast." Eve said.

"Wait a second, all those… all those things we've been finding." Sam said, slowly figuring it out.

"Call it beta testing." She shrugged.

"Well, I think your formula might be a little off. They're imploding all over town." Dean reminded her.

"Oh, there were a few unfortunate failures. But I eventually got it right. Quiet, smart, inconspicuous. It can spread through a whole town in under a day, oh and the best part… you've been with it the whole time." she said with a smirk.

"What?" Dean said, furrowing his brow as he tried to figure out what she was talking about.

"Yes, you were the final test. I had to see if it could slip past hunters undetected, of course." Her grin grew wider. "Little Ryan."

Dean closed his eyes, shaking his head as he couldn't believe that they were so stupid to believe that the kids were untouched.

"You look upset." Eve sighed, leaning back against the counter behind her. "If it makes you feel any better, Ryan was bound to work on you. Little wayward orphan, like yourselves. There's nothing you can do about it now. So let's talk."

"Nothing to say." Sam scoffed.

"Well, that's where you're wrong. I have an offer to propose. Crowley. As you know, not so easy to find. So, here's the deal. You find him, bring him to me… I let you live." She offered.

"Pass." Dean snapped immediately.

"Dean." Sam said, looking at him with surprise.

"Sam, no. The answer is no." he growled.

"You say that like you have another option." Eve said.

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't." Dean said vaguely.

"You think?" Eve asked, walking around the counter to stand beside them.

They heard the door open and looked to see the Starships dragging Elena, Bobby and Cas in, all of them looking pissed that they were caught. Elena's eyes narrowed dangerously when she saw that Eve was taking the form of Mary.

"Well, so much for your plan B." Eve said before looking at Cas. "And you, wondering why so flaccid? I'm older than you, Castiel. I know what makes angels tick. Long as I'm around, consider yourself unplugged."

Her eyes flashed to Elena and she smiled softly, walking to her.

"Treat her gently. She's more valuable than any of you." she said to the Starships, reaching out to stroke Elena's cheek. "I told you that you would come to me."

Elena jerked away, glaring at her.

"And I told you that I would kill you before I did anything for you again." She shot back.

Eve simply smiled and turned back to Sam and Dean, walking back behind the counter.

"Work for me. It's a good deal. Bonus, I won't kill your friends and even better, I won't drag Elena down to purgatory for the rest of eternity." Eve offered.

Cold chills ran down both brother's spine at the thought of Elena being thrown in purgatory and they both glanced at her. She shook her head, telling them not to give in.

"Alright, look." Dean glanced back at Eve. "The last few months we've been working for an evil dick. We're not about to sign up for an evil bitch. We don't work with demons. We don't work with monsters. And if that means you gotta kill us, then kill us!" he yelled.

"Or, I turn you. And you do what I want anyway." Eve informed him.

"Beat me with a wire hanger, answer's still no." Dean snapped.

Suddenly Eve was behind Dean with her hands on his shoulders and her mouth on his neck. Sam jumped up but was dragged backwards by Starships. Elena struggled against her captors to no avail.

"Don't test me." Eve hissed in Dean's ear.

There were a few moments of silence as Dean glared down at the counter. His eyes flashed over to Elena and she pressed her lips together, nodding once more.

"Bite me." he growled.

Eve did exactly that, sinking her teeth into his neck.

"No!" Sam yelled.

"Dean!" Cas shouted.

Suddenly Eve staggered back, coughing roughly as she looked up with panic at Dean.

"Phoenix ash. One shell…" Dean held up the shotgun shell that Elena refused. "… one ounce of whisky. Down the hatch. Little musty on the afterburn."

He smirked at her as she stared at him with wide eyes.

"Call you later, Mom." he said, stumbling away from her.

The Starships let the other four go as they watched with fear. A light began shining from Eve's chest and she suddenly morphed back into her brunette form. Her eyes lifted as she clutched at her throat and met with Elena's. The other female found herself staring into the monster's eyes and suddenly her legs were carrying her forward.

"Elena no!" Dean tried to grab her arm but she threw him off easily, walking to the Mother.

Eve reached out and touched her forehead once Elena reached her. She was heaving and coughing as black and grey liquid poured out of her mouth, nose, and ears. Suddenly light flashed from her hand and seemed to pour into Elena's eyes. A scream erupted from Elena's mouth as they both dropped to their knees. Sam and Cas both darted forward, trying to pry Elena away from Eve. They couldn't get her to budge, as if they were tethered together. Suddenly Eve fell back with a flash of light through her body and she was dead. Elena slumped over, breathing heavily. They didn't have time to check if she was all right as the Starships began attacking them.

Elena stumbled to her feet and looked at Cas, who knocked a Starship to the ground and then looked back at her, nodding. Both of them could feel that their power had returned.

"Shut your eyes!" they yelled at the same time.

The white light of their grace flashed through the diner, mingling together as it took out each of the monsters. They heard car alarms going off outside as it faded and the others uncovered their eyes, looking around at the dead Starships.

Sam sighed as he looked at Dean, who was holding a napkin to his throat.

"Hey Cas, um, Dean's bleeding pretty good." He said, not wanting to make Elena to exert more energy as she already looked exhausted.

"Yeah, I think she turned me into a Jefferson Starship. Could you clear that up too?" Dean requested.

Cas reached out and touched his shoudler, healing him immediately.

"Alright, we're good. We got to go. Now." He said, moving towards the door.

"Where?" Cas asked as they looked at him and Sam with confusion.

"The kid. The little kid. He's one of 'em." Dean sighed.

Cas stared at him for a minute before shaking his head in disbelief.

"Unbelievable." He growled.

"Yeah, I know Cas, you told me, alright. Let's just go." Dean snapped, placing the empty shell on the counter.

* * *

They appeared in the house and immediately found the uncle dead on the floor with no sign of the kids.

"So we kill the wicked witch and she still wins. I mean they could've turned half the town by now." Cas opened his mouth to say something but Dean cut him off with a glare. "Don't say it."

They looked up to see Bobby open a door.

"Found 'em." He announced.

They all walked to see that the children were both in the staircase leading to the basement, both of them dead.

"Well who ganked them?" Dean demanded.

Sam bent down and pinched some yellow powder in his fingers that was on the floor. It was sulfur.

"Demons." He said, glancing up at Dean as he stood. "So what do you think?"

"I think that demons don't give a crap about monster tweens unless they're told to." Dean shrugged.

"So you think she was telling the truth?" Sam said, looking hesitant.

"The truth about what?" Cas and Elena asked at the same time.

Bobby stared at them.

"Don't start. You're getting just as bad as those two at that talkin' at the same time thing." He grumbled.

They glanced at him and then each other before looking back at Dean.

"She said that Crowley's still kicking." He said.

Elena's heart sank as Castiel looked confused.

"But I burned his bones, how c…? Was she certain?" he said, sounding shocked.

"Sounded pretty sure. According to her, Crowley's still waterboarding her kids, somewhere." Dean nodded.

"I don't understand." The angel said, furrowing his brow as he stared at the ground.

"Well he is a crafty son of a bitch." Dean reminded him.

"I'm an angel." Cas snapped. "I'll look into it immediately."

He disappeared from the spot.

"Cas! Let us know what you find out!" Dean yelled into thin air.

Bobby and Sam exchanged a look, turning to face Elena and Dean.

"What? What?" Dean asked, looking between them.

"How did Crowley get away?" Bobby asked hesitantly. "I mean it's not like Cas to make mistakes like that. Unless…"

"Unless what?" Elena asked, her voice a little hoarse.

"Unless he meant to." Bobby finished the sentence unwillingly.

"Bobby, this is Cas we're talking about." Dean scoffed, turning to Sam. "Do you believe this?"

Sam didn't answer, shifting his eyes away.

"Sam?" Elena said.

Sam sighed.

"Look it's probably nothing, it's just... you know what? You're right. It's… it's probably nothing." He stammered.

* * *

Cas was back in the diner looking around at the bodies of Eve and the hybrids. He heard footsteps behind him but didn't turn to look at who it was.

"Really, Cas? This is getting ridiculous. How many times am I gonna have to clean up your messes?"

He turned, levelling a glare at the demon. Crowley smirked as he straightened his already impeccable suit.

* * *

Elena and Dean sat cross-legged on the bed.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I'm pretty positive." She replied.

"Just when I thought we were done with that son of a bitch." He said, rubbing his forehead.

Elena pulled him forward and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"He's dead, Dean. I just… I need to figure out what he did to my family just like you had to figure out what he did to yours. I don't want to make you help me but I don't want to keep you out of it either. If you want to help…"

"Of course I want to help." He said, drawing away and looking into her eyes as he cupped her cheek with his hand. "Sam and Bobby will too, when we explain."

Elena nodded but her lip suddenly began trembling.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I thought we were going to be done. I felt such a big relief when Eve was dead and now… Crowley…" she said, one tear sliding down her cheek.

Dean sighed, knowing that he felt exactly the same way and if he could scream and cry and still look manly, he would do so.

"So you really think he's back? You think Cas made a mistake?" he asked.

Elena hesitated, looking down at her hands.

"Do you think Cas did it on purpose too?" Dean asked, shocked.

Usually she would be first in line to defend the angel.

"No, no of course not. That's not Cas." Elena said, shaking her head quickly.

"Then what is it?" he questioned.

"Eve… wasn't trying to hurt me when she put her hand on my head. She was… I think she was trying to help me." she said, looking up at him.

"Help you?" Dean scoffed.

"She only told me two things before she died. The first one was… well about the alternate reality where Balthazar unsank the titanic." Elena said.

"Yeah?"

"I thought that I didn't remember by accident but… I think that Cas purposefully erased my memories. She didn't have time to bring them back but I do remember something." she sighed.

"What do you remember?" Dean asked.

"I knew Cas' plan… to defeat Raphael. In the other world, I knew everything about it. But now… I know nothing. He took it away on purpose. I think that he… he expects us to stop him if we find out." she said.

"Why do you think that?" he said.

"Because every time I try to think about it, to remember it, I get a really bad feeling. Like… apocalypse bad." Elena said softly.

Dean looked down, shaking his head.

"This is Cas we're talking about." He said.

"I know and I completely agree that he's innocent until proven guilty. I'm just… worried. What if he's gotten himself into something bad, Dean? We know that he's been shifty about the civil war this entire time. What if he needs our help and he's just too damn stubborn to ask. We have to figure it out. And to figure it out… I think we need to find Crowley… without Cas." She said.

Dean nodded, looking up at her.

"What's the second thing she told you?" he asked.

Elena paled a little bit and this concerned him even more.

"It's about Azazel… and the deal." She said.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's been fulfilled, Dean. Whatever it was… whatever he wanted… he got it. And that scares me to death."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**I hope you liked it! The next chapter is the Cas POV one. I still have no clue how I'm going to do it but I have a few ideas. Please review! **

**I don't know if you realize, but we only have a few chapters left before the end of this part. Can you believe it? Because I almost can't. It's insane. Sorry… I just had to recognize the insanity of it all.**

**So here's the part where you can start asking me questions or requesting things that you want to see in the next part. I will answer anything and I will consider anything. So throw them at me, I am prepared. I will come forward with a poll in the next few chapters about what you want the next part of the story to be called, so be watching for that. **

**Love you all!**


	25. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, JMHUW, Nyssandria, CherrySin, xxPaige23xx, DrawingMyHeartOut, Dean Winchester Rocks, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, RippahGoneWolf, chiwi, and TheElegantFaerie for reviewing!**

**A few things:**

**1. Remember, tell me anything you want to see and ask me any questions about the next part that you want.**

**2. All of the italics are Castiel speaking. **

**3. No outfits for this chapter.**

* * *

_You know, I've...I've been here for a very long time. And I remember many things._

_I remember being at a shoreline, watching a little grey fish heave itself up on the beach and an older brother saying, "Don't step on that fish, Castiel. Big plans for that fish."_

_I remember the Tower of Babel... all thirty-seven feet of it, which I suppose was impressive at the time. And when it fell, they howled 'divine wrath'. But come on… dried dung can only be stacked so high. I remember Cain and Abel... David and Goliath... Sodom and Gomorrah. _

_And, of course, I remember the most remarkable event… remarkable because it never came to pass. It was averted by two boys, a young woman, an old drunk and a fallen angel. The grand story. And we ripped up the ending and the rules… and destiny... leaving nothing but freedom and choice. Which is all well and good, except... well, what if I've made the wrong choice? How am I supposed to know? _

_I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me tell you my story. Let me tell you everything._

* * *

Dean was driving down the road when Castiel appeared in the passenger's seat.

"Hello, Dean." The angel said.

The hunter's head snapped around as he inhaled sharply and his heart beat furiously. He let out a breath and shook his head.

"Are you all right?" Cas asked.

"Yeah, I'm... I'm fine. How are you?" he replied, staring back at the road.

"Just wanted to check in." Cas answered.

"So, any word on, uh, Satan Jr being alive?" Dean said.

"I'm... looking, believe me. I just don't understand how Crowley could've tricked me." he said, sounding frustrated as he looked out the window.

"Well, he's a tricky son of a bitch, that's how. Doesn't matter. But if he is up and kicking, then what does matter is finding him, ripping his head off, and shoving it up his ass." Dean shrugged as his grip tightened on the road.

"What about you? Have you found anything?" Castiel questioned.

"No, nothing yet." He said, shaking his head.

The angel glanced around the car.

"Where are Sam and Elena?"

"They're keeping busy. They're tracking a Djinn in Omaha as we speak. In fact, I'm heading out there right now to meet up with them." Dean informed him.

"Well, I'd come if I could." Castiel said, staring at Dean.

"Yeah, no, I-I get it. No worries. But, Cas, you'll call, right? If you get into real trouble?" Dean glanced over to see that the seat was empty.

He sighed and shook his head, gunning the engine to move even faster.

* * *

Castiel glanced around as he landed in the underground bunker, looking at the demon who was standing by the table in an apron looking down at a disected Eve. A vampire was chained up nearby growling and grunting.

"Howdy, partner." Crowley said, glancing up at him.

"What have you found?" Cas asked, not in the mood for small talk.

"I've found a lot of things." he said. "For example... Eve's brain? Dead as a tinned kipper. And yet..."

He reached into her body and pulled out a handful of eggs.

"For some reason... she keeps laying eggs. Watch this."

He took out a hot poker and placed it on her brain. The vampire began screaming and shaking as if he was electrocuted.

"Chocula here feels every tickle." Crowley said.

Cas furrowed his brow.

"What is that good for?" he asked.

"Apart from the obvious erotic value, you got me." the demon shrugged.

"You said Eve could open the door to Purgatory." He snapped.

"Correct. I did. And I'm confident that she could have if she was still alive! Single best chance to get over the rainbow, and the Winchesters killed her!" Crowley yelled, anger flashing in his eyes.

"It was unavoidable." Cas sighed.

"You screwed up, Cas." Crowley said, pointing at him once he yanked the surgical gloves off. "You let the hounds mangle the pheasant, and now I am up to my elbows in it."

"What is your point?" Castiel demanded, stepping up to him.

:The point is... you're distracted, and that makes me nervous." The demon replied.

"I am holding up my end." He growled.

"Ah, yes. But is that all you're holding?" Crowley leaned in. "See... the stench of that Impala's all over your overcoat, Angel." He murmured.

He stepped back and walked around the table again.

"I thought we'd agreed - no more nights out with the boys."

"I spoke with Dean. I needed to know what they know." Castiel said simply.

"About what? About me, maybe? Cause I happen to have it on good authority that your three little pets are currently trying to hunt me down! Forgive me, but I think you might have a little conflict of interest here." He said.

_Crowley had a point, of course. My interest was conflicted. I still considered myself the Winchesters' guardian. After all...they taught me how to stand up... what to stand for... and what generally happens to you when you do. I was... done. I was over. And then the most extraordinary thing happened. I was put back. And we had won. We stopped Armageddon. But at a terrible cost. _

_And so I knew what I had to do next. Once again, I went to Harrow Hell, to free Sam from Lucifer's cage. It was nearly impossible, but I was so full of confidence, of mission. I see now that was arrogance... hubris... because, of course, I hadn't truly raised Sam… not all of him._

_Sometimes we're lucky enough to be given a warning. This should have been mine._

"Please. I'm begging you, Castiel. Just kill the Winchesters." Crowley pleaded.

"No." he snapped.

"Fine. Then I'll do it myself." The demon said simply.

"If you kill them, I'll just bring them back again." The angel replied.

"No, you won't. Not where I'll put 'em. Trust me." Crowley promised him.

"I said... no. don't worry about them." He said.

"Don't worry about…" Crowley shook his head. "… what, like Lucifer didn't worry? Or Michael? Or Lilith or Alastair or Azazel didn't worry?! Am I the only game piece on the board who doesn't underestimate those denim-wrapped nightmares?!" he shouted loudly.

"Just find Purgatory. If you don't, we will both die again and again, until the end of time. The Winchesters won't get to you." Castiel assured him before turning to walk out the doors.

"Let them get to me! I'll tear their friggin' hearts out!" the demon yelled at his back.

* * *

Elena and Bobby were in the cleared out study with a devil's trap drawn on the ground and a demon sitting in the middle tied to a chair. Sam was sitting outside of the room watching them.

"I got to tell you, Red... for a filthy, lower-than-snake-spit Hellspawn, you seem to have turned yourself into a damn fine hunter. I don't know whether to kill you or kiss you." Bobby informed him, twirling the demon-killing knife in his hands.

Elena was sitting in a chair with her legs curled underneath her, holding her own blade.

"Oh, please, kill me." the demon spat.

"That was you that dug out that nest of vamps back in Swan Valley, wasn't it?" the older hunter said without paying attention to his words.

"That was nice work." Elena commented.

"Eight of 'em in one go, roped and tied." Red agreed, staring at her.

"And then you brought them to Crowley, right?" Bobby asked.

He laughed. "Read the papers, redneck. The king is dead."

Bobby looked at Elena chuckling and shaking his head as she shrugged. Then he threw holy water on his face. The demon screamed as he took a step back.

"Crowley's alive. You prove it just by being, you poor, dumb jackass. Crowley's alive. His nets are still out. Except now he's using you schmucks to hunt his monsters." Crowley snapped.

"Up yours." Red shot back.

Bobby turned to look at Elena and she sighed, standing up. She turned in time to see Dean entering. He nodded at Sam and the younger brother stood, walking to him.

Elena squatted in front of the demon, looking up into his black eyes.

"Red... where's Crowley?" she asked softly, taking the good cop approach if there ever was one.

The demon just stared at her.

"No? Nothing?"

She sighed, straightening up and glancing at Bobby.

"Okay, then. Here, hang on to these for a bit." He said.

At the same time, her and Bobby both slammed their knives into his legs just above his knees. The demon screamed with pain, his face turning as red as his hair as he threw his head back. She walked into the kitchen behind Bobby.

"So, what'd you tell him?" Sam asked.

"Nothing. Just relax." Dean sighed.

"What's the hubbub?" Bobby asked.

"I saw Cas. He popped in on me about two hours back." he explained.

His eyes shifted towards the study and Elena knew that he was uncomfortable seeing the torture that was happening. That's why they sent him off to tee Jo and Ellen up face to face. They knew he wouldn't want any part of it.

"What'd you tell him?" Elena asked.

"Nothing, all right?" he said frustratedly. "Told him we were on some crap monster hunt. He doesn't know that we're getting close to Crowley."

They all nodded and Elena could see the regret in his eyes. He stared back at her.

"You know, he's our friend... and we are lying to him through our teeth." He said, sounding miserable because of it.

"Dean…" Sam sighed.

"So he burned the wrong bones. So Crowley tricked him." Dean snapped, cutting his brother off.

"He's an angel." Bobby argued.

"He is the Balki Bartokomous of Heaven! He can make a mistake!" he yelled.

"Nobody's saying nothing yet." Bobby replied.

"You think that Cas is in with Crowley. Crowley?" Dean said, the disbelief clear in his voice as he leaned against the counter.

"No, Dean. I don't think that he's with Crowley. I can't speak for those two, but I don't think so. I just think that something is going on and we need to find Crowley." Elena said.

Dean's eyes flashed from her to Bobby, the man he trusted so much.

"Look, I'm just saying I don't know. Now, look, I hate myself for even thinking it. But I don't know." Bobby sighed.

Elena felt the hairs on her neck prickling and she glanced around curiously. When she found the demon staring straight at her. She brushed it off and turned back to the group. Little did she know that someone else, someone who couldn't be seen, was watching them.

"Look, Dean, he's our friend, too, okay? And I'd die for him. I would, but... look, I'm praying we're wrong here." Sam said.

"But if we ain't... if there's a snowball of a snowball's chance here... that means we're dealing with a Superman who's gone dark side. Which means we've got to be cautious, we got to be smart, and maybe stock up on some Kryptonite." Bobby said, trying to convince both him and Elena.

They hesitated, exchanging a glance. Dean looked over to Sam.

"This makes you Lois Lane." He muttered.

"Look, one problem at a time here. We got to find Crowley now, before the damn fool cracks open Purgatory." Bobby said, gesturing back to the Demon.

_So… they already suspected._

Bobby walked back over to Red.

"Where's Crowley?" Bobby demanded.

"Up yours." He growled.

Bobby twisted both of the knives as the demon screamed.

_And the worst part was Dean and Elena, trying so hard to be loyal, with every instinct telling them otherwise._

"I don't know where Crowley is!" he whimpered.

"Are you sure about that? 'Cause we can twist again all the way to next summer." Bobby said.

He twisted the knife again.

"Oh, God! I never even met him! I don't deal with Crowley direct!" he yelled desperately.

"Well, who do you deal with?" Elena asked.

"The dispatcher. A demon named Ellsworth. He has a cabin in Oregon." He said, his head dropping.

Bobby stepped back looked at Elena. The older hunter nodded at her and she withdrew her knife, prepared to stab it through his heart.

"Ellsworth used to work for Azazel too." He said, looking up at her before she could kill him and bring back the human he was possessing.

"What did you just say?" she said, stopping short.

"Elena…" Dean said.

"He worked for Azazel. For a long time, hundreds of years. He would keep track of his deals. Every one of them." Red said desperately as a last ditch effort to keep himself alive..

Elena stared at him with wide eyes.

"How did you know…" she began.

"News of your search has spread through the world of us demons. We're all fascinated to see where it goes next." He said.

Elena glared at him, her grip tightening on her knife.

"It's a shame you won't be around to see it." She said before slamming the knife into his chest.

* * *

_If there was a demon counterpart to Bobby Singer, Ellsworth would be it._

Ellsworth was sitting at a desk in a cabin speaking into a phone.

"No, listen to me. No. I don't care. I want you to get down to New Mexico and bag me that Wendigo!" he snapped.

A bowl of blood began bubbling in front of him and he sighed.

"Hell. Hang on." he pulled it towards him and stared into it. "What? No more vampires. Because the boss says we're done with them."

He picked up another one of the phones.

"FBI. Thomas speaking. Absolutely, I sent them. Thank you for calling to check. You too. Have a nice day, now. Bye-bye."

Two demons walked in and threw the body of a shifter on the ground.

"Hey, hey, hey! No! Not in here, you friggin' Yeti. Out back!" he shouted at them.

_These demons would lead the Winchesters and Elena to Crowley, and Crowley would tear their hearts out._

Castiel suddenly appeared and slammed the two demons to the ground. Light lit up in his hands he immediately smote them.

"Oh, hell." Ellsworth cursed, throwing his head back as he attempted to leave his host.

Castiel appeared beside him and shoved the black smoke back into the body before smiting him too. He glanced around at the papers as he wiped his hand off on his jacket.

_I had no choice. I knew that Elena needed Ellsworth's information to get to the truth about her family but I did it to protect her and the boys from Crowley. Or to protect myself. I-I don't know anymore._

* * *

When they got to the house that the the demon pointed them to, they immediately slipped into battle mode. Elena and Sam slipped around the back as Bobby and Dean went in the front. They checked the large shed first to find it empty. When they came in the back of the cabin, they found that it was perfectly clean. Except for the furniture, there was nothing else in there.

"Hey." Sam said once Dean and Bobby slammed through the front door with their guns drawn. "Clear from the back."

"Demons get tipped and bugged out?" Dean wondered.

"Maybe they run from us now. I mean, that would be a nice thought, right?" Sam shrugged, turning to them as they finished their search.

"Yeah, if that's what happened." Bobby said doubtfully.

"Yeah." The younger brother said with a sigh.

Elena glanced at Dean.

"We'll find Crowley, Dean. And when we do I'm sure we'll clear Cas' name. He can't be involved in this. He's too good. We know that." she said, reaching out to take his hand.

He nodded, squeezing her hand back. Elena didn't mention it, but she had the creepy, prickly feeling again.

_Hiding... lying... sweeping away evidence. And my motives used to be so pure._

* * *

**A YEAR AND A HALF AGO**

_After supposedly saving Sam, I finally returned to heaven._

Cas glanced around the park-like atmosphere with a smile. The grass was green and the flowers were bright colors. He'd missed this place.

_Of course, there isn't one heaven. Each soul generates its own paradise. I favored the eternal Tuesday afternoon of an autistic man who drowned in a bathtub in 1953._

He turned to see a group of angels standing there including his old lieutenant, Rachel.

"You're alive." She breathed.

"Yes."

"Castiel, we saw Lucifer destroy you." Rachel said in a serious tone.

"Well, I came back." he said, shrugging.

It was such a human gesture. He could see the confusion in the others angels' eyes as they tried to figure out what it meant. He'd spent so long on earth, with humans, with his favorite humans, that he almost forgot what it was like to be among angels.

"But Lucifer? Michael?" Rachel said questioningly.

"They're gone." He said, stepping forward.

"It was God, wasn't it?" she said smiling happily at the idea that their father saved them from the fate of having one of the archangels rule them.

"No. It was the Winchesters and their guardian. They brought down the Apocalypse." He informed them.

"But you beat the Archangels, Castiel. God brought you back. He chose you, Cas... to lead us." Rachel said.

The other angels stepped forward looking like they were ready for him to tell them what to do.

"No. No one leads us anymore." Castiel said, shaking his head. "We're all free to make our own choices and to choose our own fates."

Rachel stared at him, confusion on her face as well as the others.

"What does God want?"

"God wants you to have freedom." He answered.

"But what does he want us to do with it?" she said.

_If I knew then what I know now... I might have said... it's simple. Freedom is a length of rope. God wants you to hang yourself with it._

_Those first weeks back in heaven were surprisingly difficult. Explaining freedom to angels is a bit like teaching poetry to fish. And then there was Raphael..._

Castiel glanced around the house that he was in with confusion. It was very decadent, not at all what he expected from the remaining archangel. There were guards everywhere and they were watching him with cold, emotionless eyes. When he walked into the main room, he found Raphael sitting in a leather chair drinking bourbon.

"You came. I appreciate the courage that takes." He said.

Castiel walked forward, glancing around to see a picture of George W. Bush standing in front of the American flag. He regarded it with even more befuddlement.

"Whose heaven is this?" he questioned.

"Ken Lay's. I'm borrowing it." Raphael answered.

"I still question his admittance here." Cas said doubtfully.

"He's devout. Trumps everything." The archangel said.

Cas walked to a chair and sat down facing Raphael.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"Tomorrow… I've called for a full assembly of the Holy Host. You'll kneel before me and pledge allegiance to the flag, all right?" Raphael said.

"And what flag is that?" Cas replied.

"Me, Castiel. Allegiance to me." he said simply.

"Are you joking?" Castiel demanded with a deadpan expression.

Raphael looked at him with an arched eyebrow and Castiel realized that he's slipped back into yet another human phrase that he'd picked up along the way in the last year.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" he answered.

"You never look like you're joking." Castiel informed him.

The silence that reigned in the room for a moment was disappointing. Castiel knew that if Dean were there he would have clapped Castiel on the back as he grinned proudly at the angel for making a joke. Elena would have hid a giggle behind her hand and taken his arm, beaming up at him. Sam would have rolled his eyes at all of them but there would have been a sparkle of amusement in them. Bobby would have simply shaken his head and denounced them all as 'idjits'. He missed that. He wanted that. Part of him couldn't wait until heaven was put back in order so that he could return to his friends.

"You rebelled…" Raphael said, interrupting his thoughts. "… against God, heaven, and me. Now you will atone. We'll start by freeing Lucifer and Michael from their cage. And then we'll get our show back on the road."

Dread filled Castiel and he found that his good spirits had suddenly disappeared.

"Raphael... no." he said. "The Apocalypse doesn't have to be fought!"

"Of course it does. It's God's will." Raphael said.

"How can you say that?!" Castiel demanded, raising his voice.

"Because it's what I want."

" Well, the other angels won't let you." he said.

"Are you sure? You know better than anyone, Castiel. They're soldiers. They weren't built for freedom. They were built to follow." Raphael said.

Cas squinted at him, feeling rage building in his heart. He let it happen, let the human emotion fill him. If he didn't have that, what did he have. He stood slowly, making a gesture of solidarity.

"Then I won't let you." he said slowly, looking down at the archangel.

"Really? You?" Raphael asked doubtfully, raising his hand lazily.

White light flowed out of it and all Castiel knew was pain. When he woke up, he was lying on his back in the drowend man's heaven that he favored. He spat up blood, turning over to crawl up on his hands and knees.

_I'm not ashamed to say that my big brother knocked me into next week._

He looked over to see Raphael standing there looking down at him.

"Tomorrow you kneel, Castiel...Or you and anyone with you dies."

* * *

**PRESENT DAY**

"Hey..."

Elena and Dean looked around as Sam and Bobby walked back into the main room of the cabin.

"… the place is clean." Sam said with a shrug.

"Yeah, but it's... it's like Mr. Clean-clean, you know?" Bobby said. "It's kind of OCD for your average demon."

"Yeah." Sam agreed. "So what now?"

"We'd call Cas." Elena said softly, looking down at her feet.

"What?" Sam said.

"This is usually the point where we would call Cas for help." Dean said, understanding what she was saying.

Sam sighed heavily.

"We talked about this." Bobby said.

"No, you talked. We listened." Elena said simply.

Bobby and Sam stared at her and Dean with exasperated looks as if they'd gone round and round about this. The truth was, they had gone round and round about it and it still wasn't quite getting through to the two.

"This is Cas, guys. I mean, when there was no one... and we were stuck… and I mean really stuck… he broke ranks. He has gone to the mat cut and bleeding for us so many freakin' times. This is Cas! Don't we owe him the benefit of the doubt at least?" Dean demanded.

Sam and Bobby exchanged a hesitant look before Sam glanced at the ceiling.

"Castiel... this is really important, okay? Um... we really need to talk to you." he said.

Nothing happened. Elena glanced at Dean with an urging look.

"Castiel... come on in!" he said loudly.

Still nothing.

_But I didn't go to them... because I knew they would have questions I couldn't answer... because I was afraid._

Sam and Bobby looked almost satisfied, as if their point was proven merely by Cas' failure to show up.

"Cas is busy." Dean said as if it explained it.

"That's all right." Sam said, not wanting to talk about it anymore since he knew that Elena and Dean wouldn't listen. "We are, too. Come on."

They turned to walk to the door.

"Back to square one." Bobby grumbled.

"Great. Well, what do we do now?" Dean wondered.

"Well, we caught one hunter demon before. We can do it again." Bobby said.

Sam turned to look at them and his eyes widened.

"Dean!" he yelled.

Elena turned in time to see Dean attacked by a demon. When she darted forward to help him, two other demons grabbed her and threw her back into the desk. She heard the sounds of demons attacking Sam and Bobby too.

"Crowley says hi." One of the demons growled in Dean's face before he punched him again.

Suddenly everything froze and Cas walked forward, glancing around. Elena was being held against the desk by two demons, both of them ready to pummel her. Bobby had been thrown through two glass doors and was lying on the ground. Sam was thrown over a table and the demon was leaning over it to grab him.

_Crowley sent his very best. I was caught as much by surprise as the rest of them. And it left me with yet another choice. I could reveal myself and smite the demons. Of course Crowley wouldn't like it. But on the other hand, they were my friends._

The scene unfroze and Cas grabbed the demon attacking Dean, putting his hand on the monster's face and smiting him quickly. He moved on without glancing at Dean, smiting the other two demons. When he looked up, Elena had her demons on the floor dead, her dagger in her hand. She was staring at him with wide eyes, almost looking happy to see him there.

_For a brief moment... I was me again._

Elena ran to Dean, helping him up and healing him of his wounds. Bobby and Sam didn't have any particularly bad wounds to speak of so they waved her off for now as they approached the angel.

"It is good to see you, Cas." Dean breathed, clutching Elena's hands with relief clear in his eyes.

Castiel didn't know if it was relief for them all being okay after the demon attack or relief that he'd finally shown himself.

"You all right?" he asked, looking around at them.

"Yeah." Sam sighed.

"Perfect timing, Cas." Elena said, smiling slightly at him.

"I'm glad I found you. I come with news." He said, making it up as he went along though they didn't have to know that.

"Yeah? What?" Dean asked.

He looked at the elder Winchester brother.

"I firmly believe Crowley is alive." He said.

Dean laughed, unable to help himself.

"Yeah. You think, Kojak?" he said as Elena grinned too.

They turned to look at Bobby and Sam questioningly.

"Well, Bobby, what do we think about Cas saving our asses... again?" Dean asked the older hunter.

The grumpy old man couldn't help it. Cas wasn't just a part of Elena and Dean's family, he was a part of all of their family. Bobby smiled slightly despite himself.

"I think we owe you an apology." He said.

Castiel furrowed his brow at him

"Why?" he asked, faking cluelessness.

"We've been hunting Crowley this whole time... and keeping it from you." Sam admitted.

"We thought... you were working with him." Bobby sighed.

"You thought what?" he asked, trying to sound a little offended.

It worked, from what he could see from their apologetic gazes.

"I know. It's crazy, right?" Dean scoffed.

"It's just that you torched the wrong bones. It doesn't matter. We… we were wrong." Bobby freely admitted.

"You know... you could've just asked me." Cas informed them as he walked closer to them.

"And we should have. We never should've doubted you." Elena said, wrapping her arms around Dean's waist as she laid her head on his shoulder.

"It's..." Dean cut off, shaking his head. "I just hope you can forgive us."

_Wonders never cease. They trusted me again. But it was just another lie._

"It's forgotten." He finally said..

Dean smiled at him.

"Thanks." He said.

"Yeah. Thanks, Cas." Sam breathed.

The angel smiled slightly, feeling a little bit of their old friendship flaring up.

"It is a little absurd, though." He said.

"I know, I know." Bobby said, rolling his eyes.

"Superman going to the dark side."

He didn't see it as he was focusing on Bobby and Sam to see their reactions. Elena and Dean's faces changed slightly, their smiles becoming forced and the light in their eyes fading suddenly.

"I'm still just Castiel." He said, turning to them to see that their masks were up, hiding the fact that both of their hearts had just dropped to their stomachs.

Bobby and Sam didn't see what was wrong. They didn't realize what Castiel said but Elena and Dean did. And they knew the implications of it as well.

"I guess we can put away the Kryptonite, right?" Dean asked, keeping the cheer in his voice despite the screaming disappointment and betrayal going on in his head.

"Exactly." Castiel nodded.

Elena bit her lip hard as Dean glanced at the ground. Both of them knew… and both of them knew that the other one knew.

_Of course, I didn't realize it at the time. But it was all over. Right then… just like that._

* * *

The doors flew open with a bang as Castiel stomped into bunker where Crowley was.

"You sent demons after them?" he growled.

"You kill my hunters. Why can't I kill yours?" the demon shot back.

The angel walked right up to him, looking down at him.

"They're my friends." he snapped.

"You can't have friends, not anymore. I mean, my God. You're losing it!" Crowley yelled.

"I'm fine."

"Yeah. You're the very picture of mental health. Come on. You don't think I know what this is all about?" he demanded.

"Enlighten me." he said.

"The big lie… the Winchesters still buy it. Elena still buys it. The good Cas, the righteous Cas. And long as they still believe it, you get to believe it. Well, I got news for you, kitten. A whore is a whore is a whore." Crowley said, smirking at him.

Castiel grabbed his suit jacket and shoved him against the wall roughly, causing the tile on it to shatter around him.

"I'm only gonna say this once. If you touch a hair on their heads, I will tear it all down. Our arrangement… everything. I'm still an Angel, and I will bury you." He hissed at Crowley.

He pulled away, glaring at him before disappearing.

_I asked myself, "what was I doing with this vermin?"_

"This is not how synergy works!" Crowley yelled at thin air.

_As if I didn't already know the answer._

* * *

**A YEAR AND A HALF AGO**

_Raphael was stronger than me. I wouldn't survive a straight fight. So I went to some old friends for help. _

He was standing outside the Gilbert house in the backyard. It was a fairly normal thing to see someone raking leaves as fall began but to see Dean Winchester, the hunter, doing so was strange. Cas tilted his head to the side as he watched, waiting for the right moment to reveal himself. Suddenly the door opened and Elena walked out, looking around in confusion. It was when he saw her that he suddenly questioned what he was doing there.

"You okay?" Dean asked when he glanced up at her.

"Yeah, I'm… I just felt something." Elena answered.

Cas watched them interact, seeing how normal they looked.

"Something bad?" Dean asked.

"I don't know. Maybe I'm just tired. We didn't get much sleep last night." She said, smiling at him as she walked up to him, looking up at him with adoration in her eyes.

"You should go take a nap." Dean said, stroking her cheek.

_But watching them, I stopped. Everything they sacrificed, and I was about to ask them for more. They finally looked happy and I was going to take that away from them._

"Ah, Castiel. Angel of Thursday. Just not your day is it?"

He turned with surprise to see Crowley standing there.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, glancing back at Dean and Elena with concern that the demon was there for them.

"I want to help you help me help ourselves." He answered.

"Speak plain." Cas said, not in the mood for fancy words.

"I want to discuss a simple business transaction. That's all." Crowley shrugged.

"You want to make a deal? With me?" Castiel scoffed. "I'm an Angel, you ass. I don't have a soul to sell."

"But that's it, isn't it? It's all of it. It's the souls. It all comes down to the souls in the end, doesn't it?" he said, not put off by Castiel's refusal.

"What in the hell are you talking about?" he asked, confused by what he was saying.

"I'm talking about Raphael's head on a pike. I'm talking about happy endings for all of us, with all possible entendres intended. Come on. Just a chat." Crowley said, gesturing for them to walk together.

"I have no interest in talking with you." Castiel informed him.

"Why not? I'm very interesting. Come on. Hear me out. Five minutes. No obligations. I promise."

Cas glanced back at Dean and Elena in time to see them caught in an embrace, looking happy as ever.

"I'll make it worth your while."

_I was no fool. I knew who Crowley was and what he did. But I was smarter than him, stronger. I see now that I was prideful. And in all likelihood, I was a fool._

They appeared in a long hallway. A long line of people stood in it.

"Where are we?" Castiel asked, confused.

"You don't recognize it, do you? It's Hades, new and improved. I did it myself." Crowley said, smirking.

"This is Hell?" he said, shocked.

"Yeah. See, problem with the old place was most of the inmates were masochists already. A lot of thank you, sir. Can I have another hot spike up the jacksie? But just look at them. No one likes waiting in line." Crowley said, laughing.

"And what happens when they reach the front?" Cas asked.

"Nothing. They go right back to the end again. That's efficiency." He said, sounding very proud of himself.

"You have four minutes left." Cas said, moving forward to walk alongside the line.

"What are you planning to do about Raphael?" Crowley asked, getting right down to business.

"What can I do besides submit or die?" he replied.

"Submit or die? What are you, French? How about resist?" Crowley questioned.

"I'm not strong enough, and you know it." he snapped.

"Ah, not on your own, you're not. But you're not on your own, are you? There's a lot of angels swooning over you. God's favorite. Buddy boy, you've got what they call sex appeal." The demon informed him.

"Thank you. Get to the point." Castiel said.

"Angels need leaders, so be one. Gather your army and kick the candy out of each and every angel that shows up for Raphael."

Castiel turned to him, finally realizing what he was suggesting.

"Are you proposing that I start a civil war in heaven?" he demanded.

"Ding! Ding! Ding! Tell him what he's won, Vanna."

"You're asking me to be the next Lucifer." Castiel growled.

"Please. Lucifer was a petulant child with daddy issues. Cas, you love God. God loves you. He brought you back. Did it occur to you that maybe he did this so you could be the new sheriff upstairs?"

Cas didn't want to admit that it had occurred to him.

"This is ridiculous. I mean, the amount of power that it would take to mount a war..."

"More than either of us have ever seen, yeah. But what if I said I knew how to go nuclear?" Crowley asked him.

"What do you mean?" Castiel asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Purgatory, my fine feathered friend. Purgatory."

Crowley took the lead, turning them down an empty hallway.

"Just think about it. An untapped oil well of every fanged, clawed soul. I mean, what's that over the years? Thirty million? Forty million? Just sitting there, plump and rich for the taking." He explained.

"How would you even find it when no one ever has?" Castiel asked.

"We'll need expert help." Crowley replied.

"From whom?"

"From experts, of course. I know of two eerily suited Teen Beat models and their Nancy Drew with time on their hands." Crowley suggested, stopping.

"No. Not Dean and Elena. They're retired, and they're to stay that way." Cas said, turning to face him.

"Fine. Then I know of a certain big, bald patriarch I can take off the bench."

Cas looked around, seeing a portrait of Crowley on the wall in a Nazi uniform with a pitchfork on his arm instead of a swastika band. He furrowed his brows, staring at it for a few moments.

"The point is... they can get us to the monsters. The monsters can get us to Purgatory. I know it." Crowley said simply.

"And what's your price in all of this?" Castiel asked, facing him again.

"Just half." He replied.

"Half?" Cas said with disbelief.

"My position isn't all that stable, ducky. Those souls would help, just like they'd help you. Besides, wouldn't you rather have me in charge down here? The devil you know..."

"This is pointless. Your plan would take months, and I need help now." Castiel reminded him.

"Granted. Yes. But just to show you how serious I am about this scheme... how about I float you a little loan? Say, fifty large? Fifty thousand souls from the pit. You can take them up to heaven. Make quite a showing. It's either this or the Apocalypse all over again. Everything you've worked for… everything that Sam and Dean and Elena have worked for… gone. You can save us, Castiel. God chose you to save us. And I think... deep down... you know that."

_I wish I could say I was clean of pride at that moment... or the next_.

He walked into the house slowly, practically vibrating as he knew what would happen next. Raphael turned to face him, smirking slightly at the sight of him. He was certain that Castiel was going to back down and bow down. His cocky grin fell when he noticed something different about Castiel. It was too late. The light flowed through him and he held his hand out, effortlessly banishing Raphael from the room.

"There will be no Apocalypse. And let it be known… you're either with Raphael or you're with me." he growled before turning to walk out of the house.

_And so went the long road of good intentions... the road that brought me here._

* * *

They were still in the cabin. Elena was curled into a chair staring at the ground miserably. Sam was pacing as Bobby poured himself a drink. Dean glanced over at her but she refused to meet anyone's eyes. She didn't say a word as they discussed the mistake that their angel made. In fact, she didn't even look at anyone. She just sat their silently, staring.

"Castiel, uh... we need you for a little powwow down here, so come on down." Dean called, his eyes closed tightly.

The sound of wings filled the room and they all looked up at Castiel.

"Hello." He said, nodding at them.

"Oh, Johnny on the spot." Bobby commented, sounding impressed.

"You're still here." Castiel acknowledged.

"Yeah, we had to bury the bodies." Sam nodded.

"And we found a little whiskey. Thanks for coming." Dean said, holding up his glass of amber liquid.

"How can I help?" Cas asked.

"Oh, look. We, um… we have a new plan." Sam opened up the notebook that he was holding. "We think we've finally figured out a way to track down Crowley."

Bobby stood as Castiel walked closer. Dean and Elena remained sitting.

"What is it?" he asked.

Bobby lit up a match and dropped it on the ground, igniting a ring of holy fire.

"It's you." he said simply.

Castiel looked around wildly before glancing around at everyone.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"We gotta talk." Dean said, finally standing up.

"About what? Let me go!" he said desperately, feeling the heat of the fire on his skin.

"About Superman. And Kryptonite." Dean said.

They saw when it occurred to the angel that he made a mistake. Elena bit her lip and slowly stood, joining Dean beside the fire but careful not to touch it.

"How'd you know what I said?" Bobby asked.

"How long you been watching us?" Sam said.

"You know who spies on people, Cas? Spies!" Dean snapped.

"Okay, just wait. I don't even know what you mean." Cas said, looking fearful but trying to keep control.

"What about this demon craphole? How is it so, uh... next to godliness clean in here?" Dean said.

"And how exactly did Crowley trick you with the wrong bones?" Bobby questioned.

"It's hard to understand. It's hard to explain. Just let me go. Let me out and I can…" Castiel was speaking too quickly, too desperately.

He knew it was over. They knew it was over. They just had to say it, he had to say it.

"You got to look at me, man." Dean sighed.

Castiel looked up at him, his eyes skirting over Elena as he did so. Their faces were similar, their eyes holding a similar broken-hearted disappointment.

"You got to level with me and tell me what's going on. Look me in the eye and tell me you're not working with Crowley." Dean said, wanting for the angel to deny it, wanting for them to be wrong.

Castiel stared at him for a moment, his eyes flashing to Elena. When they saw the defeat in his eyes, they knew for sure. Everything that they'd been trying to deny, refusing to believe, refusing to lose faith in their angel… it was true. He looked away, unable to meet their gazes anymore.

"You son of a bitch." Dean breathed as Elena pressed her hand to her mouth.

She turned away from the circle, her throat constricting as tears burned her eyes. Bobby and Sam didn't look pleased that they were right. They looked just as hurt as the other two.

"Let me explain." Castiel said desperately.

"You're in it with him? You and Crowley have been going after Purgatory together?" Dean snapped. "You have, huh? This whole time."

"I did it to protect you. I did it to protect all of you." Castiel tried to convince them.

"Protect us how? By opening a hole into monsterland!" Sam said, glaring at him.

"He's right, Cas. One drop got through, and it was Eve. You saw what she did, what chaos she caused. And you want to break down the entire dam?" Bobby demanded.

"To get the souls. I can stop Raphael. Please, you have to trust me." Castiel pleaded.

"Trust you?! How in the hell are we supposed to trust you now?" Sam questioned angrily.

The angel turned to face him.

"I'm still me. I'm still your friend. Sam..." he sighed, looking deep into the younger Winchester's eyes. "I'm the one who raised you from Perdition."

Elena turned, her eyes wide. Dean's head lifted slightly and his jaw clenched. Bobby simply looked shocked.

"What?" Sam whispered.

He wasn't even sure how to react to that.

"Well, no offense… but you did a pretty piss-poor job of it."

They all stared between the two.

"Wait." Sam straightened up as if something occurred to him. "Did you bring me back soulless... on purpose?"

Dean and Elena watched the angel, waiting for his answer with bated breath, not knowing how they would react if it was true. Cas stared at him, his expression holding devastation and hurt.

"How could you think that?" he asked in a broken voice.

"Well, I'm thinking a lot of things right now, Cas." Sam replied, just as hurt.

"Listen. Raphael will kill us all." Cas said, turning his head to look at all of them.

Elena's lip was trembling as she looked down at her feet. Dean was looking down as well, unable to even focus on the angel.

"He'll turn the world into a graveyard. I had no choice."

Cas looked straight at Dean.

"No, you had a choice." The elder Winchester said, looking up. "You just made the wrong one."

"You don't understand. It's complicated." Cas said.

"No, actually, it's not, and you know that." Dean snapped, glaring at him.

Elena finally looked up and Cas turned his head to look at her when he felt her eyes on him.

"Why else would you keep this whole thing a secret, Cas?" she asked softly, her voice breaking as she said his name. "Unless you knew that it was wrong?"

He didn't have an answer for her.

"When crap like this comes around, we deal with it... like we always have. What we don't do is we don't go out and make another deal with the devil!" Dean said, his voice rising angrily.

"It sounds so simple when you say it like that." Cas sighed, looking at the ground with shame.

He looked up at Dean slowly.

"Where were you when I needed to hear it?"

"I was there. Where were you?" he snapped.

Elena stepped forward, bringing his attention back to her. Dean grabbed her arm before she could step too close to the fire.

"You should've come to us for help, Cas." She said, her eyes shining with tears.

"Maybe." He said, staring back at her.

Suddenly the wind picked up and the ground began rumbling. Cas glanced around as they looked at each other with confusion.

"It's too late now."

Elena suddenly knew what was happening. She felt demons, a lot of them, heading their way.

"I can't turn back now. I can't." Castiel said.

"It's not too late. Damn it, Cas! We can fix this!" Dean growled stubbornly.

"Dean, it's not broken!" he yelled. "Run. You have to run now! Run!"

They ran for the door, Bobby and Sam bolting for it first. Dean and Elena both hesitated, looking back at their broken angel. His eyes met theirs one at a time, all of the regret that he was feeling showing plainly in them. Dean grabbed Elena's arm and yanked her out the door. When they got far enough away, they joined hands and Elena concentrated, zapping them away and back to Sioux Falls. When they landed in the house, Bobby and Sam quickly jumped into action.

"Go get the spray paint, I'll grab the regular paint. We gotta do this house up good." The older hunter said.

"What are you doing?" Elena asked.

They both glanced at her with slightly guilty expressions.

"Angel proofing sigils." Bobby sighed.

Elena looked at Dean with alarm. He couldn't get a word out before she disappeared.

* * *

The house suddenly ceased rattling and Castiel looked around as the door opened, a glare on his face.

"My, my. Playing with fire again?" Crowley asked as he walked in.

He snapped his fingers and the flames were suddenly gone.

"If you touch the Winchesters..." Cas growled, walking forward.

Suddenly Crowley wasn't in front of him anymore.

"Please. I heard you the first time." he turned to see him on the other side of the room. "I promise… nary a hair on their artfully tousled heads. Besides, I think they've proven my point for me. It's always your friends, isn't it, in the end? We try to change. We try to improve ourselves. It's always our friends who got to claw into our sides and hold us back. But you know what I see here? The new God and the new Devil, working together." Crowley said, gesturing between them.

"Enough. Stop talking." Castiel walked forward to get in Crowley's face.

The demon had the good sense to look afraid at the fury in his voice.

"And get out of my sight." The angel said through clenched teeth.

His gaze was murderous.

"Well... glad I came." Crowley sighed. "You're welcome, by the way."

He turned to head for the door.

"You know the difference between you and me? I know what I am. What are you, Castiel? What exactly are you willing to do?"

Cas stared after him. Suddenly he felt another presence in the room. He turned with surprise to see someone that he didn't expect standing there.

"I want you to tell me everything." Elena said.

* * *

Dean's eyes fluttered open and he rubbed them. He was sleeping on the couch, having sent Sam to sleep in the bed. He got a text from Elena telling him that she was in Mystic Falls and not to expect her back that night. She needed time to process with her family and he understood that.

"Hello, Dean."

He jerked up when he saw Cas standing there.

"How'd you get in here?" he demanded.

"The angel-proofing Bobby put up on the house… he got a few things wrong." The angel said.

"Well, it's too bad we got to angel-proof in the first place, isn't it? Why are you here?" he snapped, standing up.

"I want you to understand." He said, starting forward.

"Oh, believe me, I get it. Blah, blah, Raphael, right?" Dean said.

"I'm doing this for you, Dean. I'm doing this because of you."

"Because of me." he scoffed. "Yeah. You got to be kidding me."

"You're the one who taught me that freedom and free will…"

"You're a freakin' child, you know that?" he hissed. "Just because you can do what you want doesn't mean that you get to do whatever you want!"

"I know what I'm doing, Dean." Castiel said.

"I'm not gonna logic you, okay? I'm saying don't... just 'cause. I'm asking you not to. That's it." Dean said, staring deep into his eyes.

"I don't understand." Castiel said, squinting at him.

"Look, next to Sam and Elena, you and Bobby are the closest things I have to family… that you are like a brother to me. So, if I'm asking you not to do something... you got to trust me, man." Dean sighed.

Cas stared at him for a moment.

"Or what?" he said challengingly.

He couldn't help himself, he had to see how far Dean would go.

"Or I'll have to do what I have to do to stop you." Dean replied after a moment.

"You can't, Dean. You're just a man. I'm an angel." Cas reminded him.

"I don't know. I've taken some pretty big fish." Dean shrugged.

He hesitated, staring at his friend.

"I'm sorry, Dean." He said softly.

"Well, I'm sorry, too, then." Dean replied.

Cas stared at him for one more moment before disappearing. When he appeared in the snow filled park of the drowned man's eternal Tuesday, Elena turned from where she was standing by the tree.

"I waited. So… start talking." She said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Castiel sighed, sitting on the bench and looking down at his hands.

"You know, I've... I've been here a long time…"

* * *

Elena stared at him when he finished talking. They were caught up back to now, including him telling her about his talk with Dean. She stared at him, leaning against the tree, with a pained expression.

"So, that's everything. I believe it's what you would call a... tragedy from the human perspective." He sighed. "But maybe the human perspective is... limited. I don't know."

She had the sudden feeling that he wasn't talking to her anymore. She remained silent, watching him carefully as he looked up at the sky.

"That's why I'm asking you, Father. One last time. Am I doing the right thing? Am I on the right path? You have to tell me. You have to give me... a sign. Give me a sign. Because if you don't... I'm gonna ju… I'm gonna do whatever I... whatever I must."

She stepped forward.

"He has sent you a sign, Castiel." She said as he looked up at her. "He's sent you so many signs. You are just too blinded by your need to win this war to see them."

The angel looked up at her with confusion.

"I listened, Cas. I heard everything and I am sorry that you thought that making a deal with Crowley was the only way to go. I am telling you right now…" she squatted in front of him, taking his hands in hers. "If you come to us… if you stop this mission and you let us help you, we can fix everything. We can make this better. We can… mend what's been torn apart. We're there Cas, always. Just because you…"

She broke off, emotion making her voice crack as tears filled her eyes and ran freely down her face.

"We don't hate you and we haven't given up on you. Please, just… see the signs. Come back to us." She pleaded.

He stared down at her and she could see the emotion in his eyes as well, the moisture gathering in them.

"I've come so far…"

She snatched her hands away as if she'd been burned. He watched as she stood and backed away from him.

"I'm sorry, Cas. I'm so sorry we weren't there for you when we should have been. I'm so sorry that I… I failed you. We should have been there. We can still be there. I haven't given up on you. I know that our Cas is still in there. Come back to us and we'll fix it." she said.

He watched as her eyes closed, tears still escaping from them. Then she disappeared, leaving him alone in the cold, empty heaven.

* * *

**Author's Note: There you go, another chapter pretty fast. It was a pretty emotional chapter but I loved writing it, as always. I hope you'll like it. Please review!**

**The next chapter is done in a very different way than the episode. There is a visit to Mystic Falls and several very very emotional scenes. Get ready for some sadness.**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	26. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to SwanQueen4055, JMHUW, RHatch89, Nyssandria, RippahGoneWolf, xxPaige23xx, Dark-Supernatural-Angel, Dean Winchester Rocks, CherrySin, and DrawingMyHeartOut for reviewing!**

**To DrawingMyHeartOut, trust me, if I could I would. I would love to fix the shows from going downhill.**

**A few things:**

**1. Okay, I'm going to admit it. This is gonna be a heavy chapter with lots of emotion and angst. As a reward for getting through this chapter, I promise you a lighter chapter next time complete with Mystic Falls people and a trip to Florida for everyone. Think about what's in Florida for a minute and you might be able to figure out the location of the next chapter. And yes, there is going to be a case to solve in the next chapter.**

**2. I know you all hate it when Elena is put in a position that makes her weak but this chapter is very necessary not only for what happens in the rest of this story but what happens in the rest of the series, especially the next part. I know I ask this a lot, but trust me please. **

**3. THIS IS IMPORTANT READ THIS! There will be some torture scenes so I'll put a warning in the story when they come up because I really don't want to trigger anything in any of my readers. So if you don't want to read them, you'll be able to skip them.**

**4. Elena's outfit is on my profile**

* * *

**March 15, 1937 - Providence, Rhode Island**

Thunder crashed and lighting filled the room that was lit only by an oil lamp on the desk. A man sat there typing furiously with a look of concentration. He stopped for a moment, picking up his glass and taking a long drink. Finally, he typed the last words. The End. And he was done. He sighed satisfactorily before picking up the paper and laying it on top of the others that were stacked on his desk. Suddenly his door creaked open. He glanced up just as the thunder crashed and lightning poured through the window for a moment.

"Hello?" he called nervously.

There was no answer. His heart pounding, he slowly opened his desk drawer and pulled out a revolver. With his gun pointed out in front of him, he approached the door warily and looked out into the dark hallway.

"Hello?" he repeated.

When nothing happened, he retreated back into his study, closing and locking the door. He walked to his desk, facing away from the door. He poured himself another nightcap, lifting it to his lips to drink it eagerly. Suddenly the window behind him shattered and he whirled around. The figure that came through the window loomed over him. He backed away with a fearful look as the creature advanced on him.

"Please. We didn't know. I'm sorry." He pleaded.

The creature raised its arm and he screamed as it brought the weapon down. Blood spattered everywhere, including on the front page of the manuscript, which read:

**HAUNTER OF THE DARK **

**By **

**H.P. Lovecraft**

**March 15th, 1937.**

* * *

Elena was leaning back against Dean's chair, curled up on the floor. They both had a book in their hands though neither of them was reading. Sam glanced up at them, sighing heavily when he saw how distracted they were.

"Well, you know what, at least you tried." He said.

"Yeah, fat lot of good it did." Dean replied, not even able to add a snap to his voice. "Why did he even come, right?"

Elena didn't look up, staring down at her book yet her mind was a million miles away. They didn't know that she went to listen to Cas. They didn't know that she'd heard everything he had to say, that his words were weighing heavily on her heart. She finally lifted her head when Dean snapped his book shut and stood, pushing herself forward so he could walk past her.

"Do you want to try calling Gabriel again? I mean, he might have something to help us out." SAm said.

"I called him until I was hoarse. He's… busy." Elena said, her voice attempting to remain emotionless but they could hear anger and frustration behind it at the archangel's lack of response.

She'd even tried to call Michael and nothing happened.

"Well, Samuel's journals are pointless. I mean, I'm sorry, but uh, Jebediah Campbell has squat to tell me about how to stop Cas from cracking Purgatory." Dean said grumpily, tossing it on Bobby's desk.

"Well actually, it's not about the journals we have, it's about the one we don't." Bobby said, walking into the room carrying a large yellow envelope as they all looked up at him.

"Meaning what?" Sam questioned.

"Well, that's the bad news. Our pal Cas didn't stop in last night just to mend fences." He said, glancing at Dean, who sighed.

"What did he do?" he questioned.

"Stole something." The other hunter replied.

"What?" Elena said, sitting up straighter.

"The journal of one Moishe Campbell."

"Moishe?" Sam said, raising his eyebrows.

If it were any other day, with any other situation, they would have laughed. But there was nothing to laugh about.

"Of the New York Campbells." Bobby said.

"Well, uh, so we gotta get it back, right?" Sam said.

Bobby held up the envelope he was holding.

"Or just read the copy I'd already made." He smirked slightly as he handed it to Sam. "Hi, glad to meet you. Bobby Singer. Paranoid bastard."

Several minutes later, they were all reading pages of the journal that were split among them. Dean walked in holding three mugs of coffee. He handed one to Elena and one to Sam before drinking his own.

"I think I zeroed in on something." Bobby said, squinting at his papers.

"What do you got?" Dean asked.

Bobby handed him the page and he looked at the place he had highlighted.

"Went to talk to Howard Phillips about the events of March 10th." Dean read.

"That's March 10th, 1937." Bobby informed them.

"Alright. So who's this Phillips guy?" Dean asked, leaning against the desk that Sam was sitting at. Elena was stretched out on the couch with her legs stretched across Bobby's lap.

"Phillips ain't his last name. It's Lovecraft." Bobby said.

"Wait, H.P. Lovecraft?" Elena asked, her eyes widening slightly.

"Let me see that." Sam said.

Dean handed him the paper with confusion on his face.

"Am I supposed to know who that is?" he asked.

"Horror writer. At the Mountains Of Madness, The Call of Cthulu?" Bobby said, surprised that Dean didn't know who H.P. Lovecraft was.

"Yeah, it's… no, I'm…" Dean smirked. "I was too busy having sex with women."

Elena stuttered out a slight laugh and Dean looked surprised and pleased that he'd gotten that much out of her.

Bobby rolled his eyes.

"Well, anyhow. There's one notion that comes up over and over again in his stories. Namely opening doors to other dimensions and letting scary crap through."

"You don't say." Dean said, raising his eyebrows.

"Wait, so you're saying you think Lovecraft knew something about Purgatory?" Sam asked, looking like the literary part of him was flaring up.

"All I know is Moishe paid him a visit." Bobby shrugged.

Elena's phone suddenly pinged and she pulled it out of her pocket.

"It's Alaric. They need me back in Mystic Falls." She said, pulling her legs off the couch and standing up.

"Is it an emergency?" Dean asked, his suspicion rising.

"No, no I think it's fine. If it was anything bad, they would have prayed for me." she said.

"You need us to come?" Bobby asked.

"No, I'll just pop over and see what's going on. You guys keep on doing what you're doing. I'll be back soon." Elena walked to Dean and pressed a kiss to his lips before pulling on her sweater and shoes that were thrown onto a chair.

"You sure?" Dean confirmed.

"I'll be fine, Dean. I'll call you if anything goes wrong." She said.

* * *

Elena glanced around when she landed in the entryway of the house.

"Ric? Jeremy?" she called.

There was no answer and she knew that she should have known better than to proceed into the house but she still walked forward, her concern for her brother and her former history teacher overshadowing everything. She walked into the living room and let out a shocked cry when she saw Alaric lying on the ground with his eyes open and unseeing.

"Ric!" she cried.

She rushed forward and collapsed on her knees next to his body. Elena almost let out a sign of relief when she saw that he was wearing his ring but that was counteracted when she wondered whether his death was caused by a supernatural creature. That was answered quickly when she was yanked up and thrown into the wall by two demons with their black eyes showing.

"Lights out, sweetheart." One of them growled before slamming his fist into her face.

* * *

Dean was sitting on the couch now reading the copied journal. Bobby was sitting at the desk as he read and Sam was pacing. Dean's phone suddenly rang and he looked down at it, his brow furrowing at the sight of the caller ID.

"Jeremy?" he said with confusion.

"Dean. I-I just got home. Elena is here. She's unconscious and there are men here. I think they were waiting for me. I got away and ran upstairs."

"What?" Dean said, standing up with wide eyes.

Sam and Bobby looked at him with questioning looks.

"They killed Alaric. I think he was wearing his ring. They got Elena. They're coming, I hear them." Jeremy said quickly, sounding panicked.

"What are they?" Dean demanded.

"I - I don't know." He stammered.

"Did you see their eyes?"

"No."

"Teeth?"

"No."

"This is important Jeremy, I need to know." Dean snapped without thinking.

"Dean, I don't know."

Any other time, Dean knew that Jeremy would have been able to handle anything. Both him and Elena had spent time making sure that he'd be able to defend himself in a fight. But Dean knew that seeing his sister in trouble and unconscious and Alaric dead must have shaken him up.

"Okay, where are you now?" Dean asked.

"In Alaric's room."

"Okay, Jeremy, listen to me. Go to the window and jump."

"What?!" Jeremy demanded.

"Any bones you break won't compare to what they're gonna do to you, Jeremy. You've got to jump."

"Okay, I'm going."

Dean heard shuffling and shaking. There was a thump.

"I'm coming right now." He said.

He heard a loud crash and winced at the sound.

"I'm coming to get you and your sister, I promise. You with me, Jer? Jeremy?"

There was no answer and he heard a crackling noise before a completely different voice came on the phone.

"Hello, Dean. Fancy a chat?"

Dean's eyes widened even further and his blood felt like it was boiling in his veins as fury filled him at the sound of the demon's voice.

"God, how long's it been, Dean? Since my so-called demise, yes?" Crowley said and he could hear the smirk in the bastard's voice.

"Crowley, let 'em go now, or I swear..."

"Right, right. You'll rip me a cornucopia of orifices. Let's get to the bit where I tell you how this goes. Your chocolate's been in my peanut butter for far too long." He said.

"I am going to kill you." Dean growled out.

"Oh Dean, ever the wit. I've got your guardian and her brother and I'm keeping them until I'm satisfied that you've backed the hell off!" Crowley yelled the last few words.

"I'm telling you, last chance to let 'em go easy." Dean said, his voice calm and deadly.

"You're adorable when you get all threatening. Don't worry, I won't hurt them. Provided you and Jolly Green stand down. Got it? Splendid. Kisses."

The dial tone sounded on the other side and Dean slowly lowered his phone, pressing the 'end' button.

"What's the story?" Bobby asked.

"He said Elena and Jeremy keep breathing as long as we sit on our thumbs." He answered.

Rage filled the eyes of the other two hunters but both of them knew that they had to keep level heads. Because judging by the look on Dean's face, he wouldn't be doing the same.

Sam sighed, his mind automatically going to the angel.

"You think Cas knows about this?" he asked.

"We gotta assume he does." Dean said, his voice still eerily calm.

"So what are we gonna do?" Sam said. "Should we call Gabriel?"

"No, if he wasn't listening before he won't listen now." Dean snapped, his anger at the archangel showing through.

"You don't know that… if Elena's in danger…" Sam began.

Dean just gave him a look.

"I'll tell you what we're not gonna do… sit here. I'm going after 'em." Dean said, grabbing his jacket and heading for the door.

"I'm coming with." Sam said.

"No, Sam. You and Bobby stay on the Lovecraft thing, okay? Cas is already way ahead of us." Dean said, looking back at him.

"You gotta be nuts if you think I'm gonna let you do this alone. This is Elena we're talking about. Bobby can take care of the case."

Bobby stood up, refusing as well. Sam was right. This was Elena and her little brother. They had to be the priority.

"No." Bobby said stubbornly.

"Bobby, this is a big ball, okay? We can't drop it now. Elena wouldn't want that and you know it." Dean said.

"Fine." The older hunter sighed. "But how are you two gonna find Elena and Jeremy?"

* * *

They watched as Bobby drove off, intending on finding out what happened with Lovecraft and why Cas was after the information on him. Dean and Sam remained outside, quickly doing the spell that they knew well by now. The lights shattered around them as the wind howled.

"I'm sorry boys, do I look like a man-servant to you?"

They turned to see Balthazar standing there with a flute of champagne.

"No? No? Then quit ringing for me, please." He snapped.

"This is important, Balthazar." Dean said impatiently.

"I was drinking '75 Dom out of a soprano's navel when you called. That was important." Balthazar corrected him.

"Crowley's alive." Sam said.

He stared at them for a moment before stepping forward.

"Well you've been scooped. Cas already told me."

"Well did Cas tell you that he is Crowley's butt-buddy, you smug little dick?" Dean demanded.

That made the angel falter.

"Excuse me?" he said.

"Handshake deal. Go halfsies on all the souls of Purgatory. He fill you in on that?" Sam asked.

They both stared at the angel, waiting for his reaction.

"Well, yes, yes. Yes, of course he did. Yes." He said, clearly lying.

"Oh, yes, of course. I - I - we can read it all over your face." Sam scoffed.

"Look, Crowley and Cas took Elena and her brother, Jeremy. You know they're very important to us" Dean said, sounding desperate.

"And I care about this because?" Balthazar asked though he was already convinced.

"Because maybe there is a shred of decency underneath this… this snarky crap." Dean snapped.

The angel took a sip of his champagne.

"They're innocent people and I'm asking for your help."

"Hmmm. I see." Balthazar nodded. "Fair enough."

The angel disappeared and they stared around wildly.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean yelled.

"Look, Dean. Let's just call Cas. Maybe he doesn't know anything about this." Sam sighed, turning to his brother.

"We are not calling Cas." He growled.

"Yeah, but Dean….

"We're not calling Cas!"

Sam stared at him, seeing the panic layered under the anger and desperation.

"So what then?" he asked.

* * *

Elena groaned as her eyes fluttered open. Her head was pounding with pain and she quickly realized that her situation was not so great. She tilted her head back, wincing to see that her arms were above her head and chained to the high ceiling of the warehouse that she seemed to be in. There was heat around her and when she looked down, she saw that a holy-fire circle was surrounding her.

"Son of a bitch." She grumbled.

"Oh it gets worse, sweetheart."

Elena's head lifted and she saw a demon standing right outside the circle holding a knife. He tilted his head to the right and she glanced over, her eyes widening when she saw Jeremy sitting down, tied to a pillar. He was gagged and staring straight at her with wide, panicking eyes.

"Jeremy!" she exclaimed, her loud voice making her own head pound. "Let him go!"

"That's not gonna happen. Crowley's orders." The demon said.

Another demon stepped up to the circle, shocking her by stepping over the fire.

"He also told us that you're not to be harmed but… we're bored." He said.

**WARNING**

He walked around her and she realized that they'd stripped her of her sweater and she was only in her thin top. She winced when she heard him tear it open from the back, leaving it hanging off of her frame.

"Don't be afraid to scream. Actually, scream as loud as you want. It's like music to our ears." The demon whispered in her ear.

Elena felt her body trembling as he traced a cool knife over her skin.

"Heal this, bitch." He growled.

Elena threw her head back and screamed as the pain sent a white hot flash through her head.

**SCENE OVER**

* * *

"You know, uh, horror… lowbrow." Bobby glanced up at the man, Judah, as he stood in his small apartment.

The man was an expert on Lovecraft but that didn't make Bobby any less comfortable with being around him. He was a strange man.

"Put us in the ghetto, fine. But H.P. Lovecraft, this guy is literature. I mean he… he should be taught in schools. He's up there with Dickens and Dean R. Koontz, seriously."

"Well that's, that's definitely the angle I'm taking with my piece." Bobby nodded.

"Oh, okay. Okay. Sorry, you… please." Judah gestured for them to sit.

"So, I hear you have a large collection of Lovecraft's private letters." He said.

"Huh, yeah. World's largest." Judah said with a proud smile.

"Wow. You must be catnip to the ladies." Bobby said, sarcasm clear in his voice.

The man chuckled, not quite catching the tone.

"I'm in a long-term online relationship, so..." he trailed off, nodding.

"Well, um, I'd like to ask you about Lovecraft's last years. Specifically, anything that might've gone down around March 10th, 1937." Bobby said.

"Are…? Okay. Are… are you working on this with the other guy?" Judah asked, squinting suspiciously.

"Other guy?" Bobby asked, getting a bad feeling about it.

"Yeah, uh, you know, trenchcoat, looks like Columbo, talks like Rain Man."

Bobby sighed, of course Cas would have been led to this guy.

"Right. We're... competitors. Rival magazines." He lied.

Judah laughed nervously.

"Oh, okay. Okay, well um, I'll tell you what I told him. Howard had a dinner party on March 10th."

"Party? How many friends at this party?" Bobby questioned.

"Well, six. If by friends you mean co-worshippers in a black magic cult. They were getting together that night to perform a ritual. Something big." He explained.

"Define big." Bobby said.

"Not much. Just open a door into another dimension." Judah said, shrugging.

"Why would they do that?" Bobby demanded, suddenly angry.

There was nothing that made him angrier than people performing dangerous rituals that didn't have any business doing so.

"To see what's out there, you know. Maybe it's friendly." Judah said, confused by his anger.

"It's never friendly." Bobby snapped.

The other man gave him a questioning look.

"I mean, I imagine. So, did it work? The spell."

"Well, uh, there was no mention of Cthulu in the morning papers, so... actually, I do happen to have several letters detailing the dinner."

He walked to his bookshelf and pulled out a file.

"Worst thing that was reported was a hangover, so it's, uh… got it… I've got them right here. Some… it's actually pretty interesting, um."

He opened the file to find it empty. He looked around with confusion before glancing up at Bobby.

"And, and they were... I'm sorry, they were right… they were right here."

Bobby sighed, standing up.

"Well, it's not like an invisible guy could just pop in and steal 'em, right?" he said.

"Right... right." Judah nodded, staring around at the area.

"So, uh, I'll leave you to it. And, um, you call me if you find 'em, huh?"

Bobby turned to leave as Judah waved at him.

"Okay, hey. Thanks, thanks again for dropping by, huh?" the strange man said, smiling at him.

* * *

Sam looked around as he stood outside of the barn. Dean was inside. The sounds of the fighting and Dean's shouts reached his ears but he tried to ignore them.

"Lovecraft tried to jimmy a damn dimensional door. Idjit." Bobby said and Sam could practically hear the eye roll.

"So what happened?" Sam questioned.

"Well, nothing much. Except, I dug, and every guest invited to the hoedown, dead or disappeared inside a year." Bobby informed him.

"Wow, um, so where are you off to now?"

"Have a chat with one of the guests." The older hunter answered.

"Wait, didn't you just say that everyone there died?" Sam said, confused.

"Yeah, everybody Lovecraft invited died. Seems the maid had a nine-year-old boy. He was there." Bobby said.

"So, he'd be what, 83 years old now? Where is he?" Sam wondered.

"Same place he's been ever since the big night. Locked in a mental ward."

"I see, um... well, keep me posted, huh?" Sam sighed, the sounds of the fighting getting louder.

"Okay, stay in touch. How's things going there? You got a lead on Elena and Jeremy?"

"Well, um, we're making a few inquiries." A loud scream floated out of the barn. "Slow going."

"How's Dean?" Bobby asked.

"About how you'd expect." Sam replied.

When he hung up with Bobby, he sighed as his phone rang again.

"The spell isn't working. Bonnie can't locate them and neither can Klaus's witches. Have you found them yet?" were the first words out of Caroline's mouth.

"Not yet. I promised you that we would keep you posted and we will. We'll find them, I promise. Just keep everyone calm there. We'll bring them back." Sam said.

"Just… please… make sure they're okay." The blonde said tearily.

"We will." Sam nodded.

* * *

Elena's head slumped forward as tears ran down her face mingling with the blood dripping from her cheek, lip, and forehead where the demon's hit her.

"Please…" she whimpered, her entire body screaming with pain.

"Oh wait… wait…" the demon stepped out of the fire circle and walked to Jeremy. "I think little brother has something to say."

He pulled the gag off, allowing Jeremy to have free movement of his mouth.

"Let her go. She'll tell you anything you want to know. Please!" he pleaded, tears running down his own face at seeing his sister endlessly tortured.

"Oh we don't want to know anything. She's just killed so many of us… we figure we owe her a little payback." The demon said, squatting next to him. "Of course, if you really want to see her get some relief, we can string you up instead. Give her a different kind of torture as she watches us slice and dice her brother."

"Don't you touch him."

They looked up at Elena's words to see her glaring at the demon, her spirit not broken despite the pain they were putting her through.

"What was that?" the demon asked as the other one circled her hungrily.

There were other demons in the building but they were acting as guards more than anything else.

"Get away from my brother. You don't touch him." she said, her voice hoarse from screaming.

"Well… looks like big sister has spoken. Sorry little brother… you'll just have to keep watching." The demon said before replacing his gag and standing to approach her again.

"Don't look, Jeremy. Close your eyes." Elena said, staring straight into his eyes.

**WARNING**

He let out a choked sob as the demons retrieved something off of the table. Elena looked around to see that it was a blowtorch instead of a knife.

"The good thing about living as long as we do? We get really innovative. Like a blowtorch filled with holy oil mixed with gasoline. Ready yourself, sweetheart, this is gonna burn." The demon said as he walked around to her back.

She heard the hiss as the torch started up and she began sobbing as she anticipated the pain. Another guttural scream wrenched itself out of her chest as she felt the heat on her skin.

**SCENE OVER**

* * *

Dean glared down at the demon that he had strapped into the center of a devil's trap in the barn. He paced back and forth with the bloody knife in his hand. Bodies of other demons were scattered around them.

"Look, I don't know anything." The black-eyed monster said, looking desperate.

"Yeah, we'll see." Dean replied, walking away to drink straight out of a bottle of whiskey.

Sam chose that moment to walk in.

"Dean." He sighed.

"Yeah?" Dean didn't look up at his brother as he cleaned off the demon-killing knife.

"Look, man. You… you're running on what, uh, whiskey and… and coffee and whatever else you're taking." Sam said.

"Yeah, and?" he asid, facing him.

"And we're grasping at straws here, man." Sam said.

Dean pointed the knife at the bound demon.

"Look, I kill enough of these demons, eventually one of 'em's gonna tell me where Crowley is. So we good?" he growled.

"Well look, you've been at it for a while, why don't you at least let me take over? You deserve a break." Sam suggested.

"No thanks." He said, turning to walk to the demon.

"Dean." Sam grabbed his arm and Dean shoved him off.

"Sam, back off. Elena and Jeremy, wherever they are, that is a hundred percent on me. And if they are hurt..." Dean cut off, not even wanting to think about it. "I'll yell if I need you."

"It's not just on you, Dean. It's on all of us. We all care about them, not just you." Sam sighed before turning to walk out.

When he got outside, he raised his head to look at the sky.

"Castiel, it's Sam. Um, so look, I don't know if you're in on this whole Jeremy-Elena thing, but if you have any heart whatsoever, bring 'em back to us, man. C'mon. Please. I'm begging you."

He shook his head, looking at his hands.

"I am begging you, do you understand?"

He looked around, waiting. Nothing happened. He scoffed once before turning to walk off, not knowing that the angel was there watching, invisible but still there.

* * *

Crowley was reading an anatomy book when Castiel came stomping into the lab.

"Sweetie. You look tense." He said, smirking at the angel.

"You took Elena and Jeremy." Castiel growled angrily.

"Oh. That." Crowley sighed.

"I told you…"

"Not to touch Sam and Dean. And I've respected that. I'm merely exploiting the obvious loophole. You never said a word about Elena or her family. So as long as I have the guardian and her brother, your fop-coiffed little heroes will be scouring the earth for them, therefore not you, and not me. Everybody wins." The demon shrugged.

"You should've talked to me first." Castiel said, glaring at him.

"I'd rather ask forgiveness than permission." He said, chuckling.

"Where are they, Crowley?" he demanded.

Crowley made a motion of zipping his lips closed.

"You are not to harm them, do you understand me?" Castiel said, fury radiating from his every pore.

He honestly never thought that Crowley would go after Elena. After all, she was strong. If he went after her, he must have had a foolproof way of making sure that she didn't get away.

"You know what? You're all maxed out on putting people out of bounds. I'll do with them as I please. Want to stop me? Go find freaking Purgatory!" Crowley shouted.

Suddenly Castiel winced as a high-pitched sound filled his ears. He touched his temple and glared at the ceiling.

"Call on the bat-phone? Never call during business hours, do they?" Crowley taunted.

"I'll be back." he said before disappearing.

* * *

Castiel landed in a forest, looking around. He felt the presence behind him before the other angel spoke.

"Cas, Cas, Cas. So good of you to come."

He turned, staring at him.

"Balthazar. Why'd you summon me here?" he asked suspiciously.

"Can I ask you a direct question?" Balthazar said.

"Of course." Castiel answered.

"Are you in figrante with the King of Hades?" he demanded.

Castiel hesitated, staring at him.

"Of course not." he said.

The other angel stared at him before chuckling.

"Always were such a terrible liar. So it's true. Alright then, why?" Balthazar asked, anger behind his careless façade.

"It's a means to an end. Balthazar, you understand that." Castiel said, nodding at him.

"Oh, absolutely. But what's the end here exactly? You know, raid Purgatory, snatch up all the souls?" he demanded.

"Win the war."

"And I can only assume that you'd be the vessel, correct? Suck up all those souls into yourself? All that power?" Balthazar hissed.

"It's the only way." Cas said, stepping forward.

"Or too much juice for you, in which case you explode, taking a substantial chunk of the planet along with you." he corrected his brother.

"That won't happen." He said though there was a hint of doubt in his voice.

"Sure, sure. Of course." Balthazar scoffed. "Just… just tell me that it's entirely risk-free."

Castiel's eyes narrowed and he stepped closer.

"I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, but I need to know. Are you with me or not?"

Balthazar chuckled humorlessly again.

"Ah. You know, you may be certifiable, but fine. In for a penny, in for a pound."

Cas nodded, looking slightly relieved.

"How'd you hear about this anyway?" he asked.

"Oh, your howler monkeys of course. See they're just a touch worked up about that kidnapping business, you know?" Balthazar answered.

* * *

Bobby sat down slowly, staring at the older man.

"You sure you're not with that other reporter, in the coat? Liar, that one. Not who he says." Westborough said, twitching slightly as he glanced around the room of the mental hospital.

"No sir. Uh, I'm not affiliated with his paper. I just have a couple of questions about a dinner party you were at in 1937." Bobby ansswered.

"Everyone's so fascinated. Wanna know about my night at the home of the great H.P. Lovecraft." The old man said, looking bothered.

"If you don't mind." Bobby said, wary of setting the man off.

"Well you know the story. They did their spell, and they all said it failed." Westborough leaned in closer to Bobby. "Do you believe in monsters?"

"Yep." He nodded.

"You know, you go saying that, they'll lock you in here, rest of your life." the other man said, laughing hysterically once.

"Whatever you saw, you tell me and I'll buy it straight." Bobby assured him.

"The spell worked. A door opened and something came through. But it was invisible, so no one knew, except me."

"How did you know then?" he questioned.

"Because it took my mother." The old man said, his eyes wide with fear. "It went into her. She wasn't the same. She even smelled different. And then, she disappeared. And surprise, surprise, one by one, they all start dying."

"I'm sorry, about your mom." Bobby said sadly.

The man stared at him, his eyes misty and emotional.

"You're the first person, ever said that. Hey, you wanna see a picture? Hmm?" he said, smiling slightly.

Bobby nodded slowly. Westborough pulled a photo out of his shirt pocket and handed it to Bobby. He stared at it with wide eyes, immediately recognizing the person in the picture.

"I'll be damned."

* * *

Dean slowly filled a syringe with blood before turning to the demon. He walked over the devil's trap. Without knowing, he rubbed a part of the pain off with his shoe. Unfortunately, the demon did notice.

"I promise you, pal. Start talking." He said. "Or I swear, I will rip your skin off, strip by strip. And then I'm gonna kill you."

He leaned over the demon, holding the syringe threateningly.

"And then I'm gonna do it to the next demon. You hear me?" Dean growled.

"Yeah." The demon's eyes went black. "I hear you."

Dean stared at him, surprised. Suddenly he was thrown backwards against a van that was parked in the barn. The demon easily broke out of his bounds and walked up to him, wrapping his hand around Dean's neck.

"So you can stop talking, you miserable sack." The demon snapped, glaring at him.

Suddenly a hand came down on the demon's head and Dean closed his eyes as bright light erupted from the demon's face. His hand fell from Dean's throat as he dropped to the ground. Dean looked up in shock to see Castiel standing there. He took a moment to catch his breath and calm his heartbeat before speaking.

"I didn't ask for your help." He said, rubbing his throat.

"Well, regardless, you're welcome." The angel said, shifting uncomfortably in place.

"Why are you here?" Dean demanded, walking past him.

"I had no idea Crowley would take Elena and Jeremy." Cas said, turning to face him.

Dean looked around the devil's trap, discovering the place where he rubbed the paint off with a shake of his head. It was reckless and stupid of him.

"Yeah right." he scoffed, picking up the broken straps .

"You don't believe me." Castiel said, almost sounding sad at the thought.

"I don't believe a word that's coming out of your mouth." Dean said, turning to look at the angel.

"I thought you said that we were like family. Well I think that too. I think that Elena is my family and I think that she would believe me. Shouldn't trust run both ways?" Cas questioned.

"Cas, I just can't..." he said, shaking his head.

"Dean…" the angel sighed, walking forward and looking exhausted. "I do everything that you ask. I always come when you call, and I am your friend. Still, despite your lack of faith in me, and now your threats."

Dean stared into Castiel's eyes, almost not believing what he was seeing. The angel's eyes were filled with moisture, as though tears would begin falling at any moment.

"I just saved you, yet again. Has anyone but your closest kin ever done more for you? All I ask is this one thing."

"Trust your plan to pop Purgatory?" he questioned, his voice doubtful and frustrated.

"I've earned that, Dean." Cas said softly.

Dean scoffed quietly.

"I came to tell you that I will find Elena and Jeremy, and I will bring them back." The angel said confidently. "Stand behind me, the one time I ask."

Realization dawned in Dean's eyes and he stepped forward.

"You're asking me to stand down?" he demanded.

"Dean…"

"That's the same damn ransom note that Crowley handed me. You know that, right?"

Castiel stared at him, looking like he wished that he could take those words back and replace them with better ones. But he knew that it was too late. He knew that the damage was done by the fury in the hunter's eyes.

"Well no thanks. I'll find 'em myself. In fact, why don't you go back to Crowley and tell him that I said you can both kiss my ass."

He turned to walk away, pressing his fist to his mouth as sadness and pain overwhelmed him. The angel was supposed to be their friend, their family. Nothing that he'd done up to this point had disappointed Dean this much. Using Elena and Jeremy as collateral just like Crowley was doing… it was too much. It was… unforgivable. He didn't see it, but the angel grew more upset behind him, his face betraying his devastation as he knew that he'd done something unforgivable. He disappeared before another word could be spoken.

* * *

Bobby walked up to the door of the cabin slowly, recognizing the protective sigil on the door. He knocked on it and it opened to reveal a surprised female.

"Bobby?" Elle Visyak said, shocked to see him.

"Ellie. It's been a while." he said with a slight smile.

She exhaled sharply before looking around and stepping aside.

"Come in."

He entered the cabin and they walked to the couch, Elle handing him a drink while keeping another for herself.

"So, how did you find me?" she asked.

"Well, we weren't together long, Ellie, but, uh, I know a thing or two about you. I know your safe houses. And let me tell you, this one ain't all that safe."

She sighed heavily.

"So, did you come here just to um, chat?"

Bobby took a gulp of his drink.

"I know what you are, Ellie." He pulled out the photo that he got from Westborough and handed it to her.

Realization lit up in her eyes.

"You're not exactly from Milwaukee, are you?" he asked.

"Not exactly." She said guiltily, setting the picture down on the coffee table.

"And, not that I'd have minded, but you kind of fibbed about your age too." Bobby said, looking at her.

"Just slightly... nine hundred years."

The hunter shook his head.

"So what's your game, then?" he asked.

"Game?" Elle asked.

"Yeah, why are you here? Eve came through and raised all kinds of hell quickly. You've been here how long, what's with the slow burn?" Bobby questioned.

"Well, you know, we're not all alike." She said defensively.

"Monsters?" he said.

"Okay, if it makes you feel better to call me that? Fine." Elle sighed.

"You're from freaking Purgatory. You never thought to mention that the whole time you slept with me?" he demanded.

She scoffed.

"I am what I am, Bobby. And I happen to be a friend." Elle said.

"You wanna explain that to me?" he demanded.

"I didn't ask those idiots to crack the door. I just happened to be the thing that fell through. And let me tell you something, you are lucky it was me." she informed him.

"You're saying you're on our side?" he asked doubtfully.

"I'm on my side. I happen to like it here. I don't want to see this place turned into some bloody wasteland." Elle said simply.

"So you killed H.P. Lovecraft?" Bobby reminded her.

"Please. That guy couldn't even write hello." She said, standing up and facing him. "Look, I have spent seventy-five years trying to keep Purgatory closed. Why do you think I gave Dean and Elena the sword? To stop Eve. Hell, you guys were supposed to kill the damn dragons!"

Bobby stood up, setting his glass down.

"Look, this all comes down to one angel. He wants Purgatory and he's looking for you." he informed her, hesitantly believing her.

"Well, thanks for the heads-up." Elle said.

"I know him, Ellie. He's gonna figure it out. One way or another. Now, the only way I can stop him is to get ahead of him, so I need to know how you open the door." He said.

"No." she shook her head. "No, Bobby, it's too dangerous for anyone to know."

"If I found you, he ain't far behind. At least let me take you somewhere, protect you." Bobby offered.

"No. Thanks." She smiled slightly. "I have a couple of other places lined up. Don't worry. Bobby, you're just a man. I'm better off protecting myself."

* * *

Sam sighed as he walked through the kitchen, pouring himself a drink and downing it in two gulps.

"Drinking your feelings, Sam? I thought that was your brother's bag."

He turned to see Balthazar standing there.

"Stressful times." Sam shrugged.

"Well, we need to talk." The angel said.

"Why?" the younger Winchester shot back.

"Because… I know I'm gonna live to regret this… but I'm officially on your team. You bastards."

"And we should believe you why?" Dean asked, walking into the kitchen.

They both looked at him.

"Would you believe I had a shred of decency?" Balthazar questioned.

"No." Sam said.

"Oh. That hurts."

Sam's eyebrows rose as he gave the angel a skeptical look.

"Okay, you're right. It's survival. You see, I asked Cas some questions and I disliked his answers. He seems awfully sure of himself for a man who wants to swallow a million nuclear reactors. I mean, these things can get a bit Chernobyl, you know? So, voilà. Consider me your double agent. Oh, and I took the liberty of searching for your friends. Uh, took a while. Crowley's a clever one." Balthazar said.

"You found them?" Dean asked, his eyes widening.

"Well, the upside is yes, uh, the downside is no, I can't get them for you." he said.

"Why not?" Sam questioned.

"Because Crowley's angel-proofed the whole bloody building. I guess he doesn't trust Cas. Seems that marriage is going swimmingly." The angel said, smirking.

"Okay, well get us as close as you can." Dean requested.

"Sure. But then you're on your own." Balthazar informed them.

* * *

They appeared just outside of a large warehouse.

"Alright, boys. This is where I get off. God be with you and what have you." Balthazar said before disappearing.

Dean and Sam walked up to it slowly, watching as a demon guard walked out. Dean immediately stabbed him in the chest as he ran up the stairs leading to a door. The demon groaned as he died and Dean pushed the body over the side gently to let Sam take it and lie it on the ground gently so that it wouldn't cause a ruckus. When they walked into the building, they didn't find anyone around them. Dean was carrying the demon-killing knife and a duffle bag containing other weapons while Sam was carrying a shotgun.

"Alright, be careful." Dean murmured just before they split up.

Sam walked around the corner, glancing around with sharp eyes. A noise sounded behind him and he whirled around with a gasp, aiming his shotgun. Suddenly a demon jumped down from the catwalk above him and knocked him unconscious. Two demons carried him away, shutting him into a room.

* * *

Jeremy's head snapped up when he heard the fighting outside the room. His eyes went to Elena and he saw that she was still unconscious. When she fainted and the demons couldn't rouse her, her they grew bored with their torture and left the room. Suddenly one of the demons who tortured her slammed through the door, falling over the stairs and to the ground with light flashing within his body. He glanced up to see Dean run through the door. His eyes quickly took stock of the situation and fury filled them when he saw Elena hanging by her wrists from the ceiling with blood covering her. He ran down the stairs and to Jeremy, yanking the knife out of the demon's chest on the way. He quickly sliced through his ropes and yanked the gag from his mouth.

"Dean. Thank God." He said, getting up.

"Help me." Dean said simply, pulling out his lock-picking kit.

He handed Jeremy the knife and had him hold up Elena's body as he worked on freeing her from the metal cuffs that were connected to the chains. He caught sight of her back and almost threw up, seeing the damage that the demons did to her. She was probably too exhausted and drained of energy to heal herself. Therefore he had no other choice, he had to take her to a hospital so that she could get her strength back. When he finally got the cuffs free, Elenacollapsed in Jeremy's arms.

"All right let's get out of here."

Suddenly Jeremy had the knife pressed to her throat as he knelt on the ground with her body splayed in his arms. Dean stared at him with wide eyes. The younger Gilbert's eyes suddenly went black.

"We're not going anywhere." He said, smirking.

"We thought you might come, so I jumped this meatsuit for insurance. Can't go losing our leverage now, can we?" the demon said.

Dean slowly straightened up, glaring down at him. Slowly he reached back and pulled the flask of holy water out of his back pocket. The demon didn't notice, smirking down at Elena.

"You should have heard her scream when we were carving into her. Oh she was yelling for you to save her. Looks like she's not as strong as she thought she was. Blubbering about how you were going to come save her. It was pathetic."

The moment the demon looked up, Dean tossed the holy water into his face. He let out a scream of shock, stumbling backwards. Dean shot forward and stood protectively in front of where Elena was lying still unconscious and deathly pale.

Jeremy looked up, glaring at him. He was still holding the knife.

"What's the matter, Dean? Hit me! Oh, you don't wanna hurt poor Jeremy." The demon laughed evilly.

Dean hesitated before speaking.

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus…"

The demon's smirk fell and he glared again.

"Shut your mouth." He growled.

"Omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica…"

The demon hunched over, struggling to breath.

"… ergo draco maledicte… ecclesiam…"

"Stop it!" he shouted.

"… tuam…"

"I'm warning you." the demon threatened.

"You can go to hell, you black-eyed son of a bitch." Dean growled.

Suddenly the demon's eyes lit up and he grinned.

"You sure about that?"

Suddenly the demon lifted and drove the knife into Jeremy's stomach before ripping it out.

"No!" Dean yelled.

The demon held up his hand, showing off that Jeremy's ring was missing. He laughed happily.

"Exorcise me now. He's just a dead meatsuit. Now what was it you wanted to say?" the demon said challengingly.

Dean looked back at Elena with a devastated expression before looking back at Jeremy.

"Securi tibi facias libertate…" the demon began bleeding from the mouth. "… servire te rogamus, audi nos."

Jeremy screamed as he fell to his knees and the demon was expelled from his body. He crumpled over onto the ground and Dean ran to him. He turned him over and looked down at the wound. He stared around and spotted a cloth on the table and ran to it.

"Dean." Jeremy choked out as he ran back.

"Jeremy. Here, put pressure on that, okay?"

"They tortured her… Dean. In front of me… her screams… they hurt her."

Dean stared down at him with a devastated expression just before the kid passed out. The door slammed open and Dean looked up to see Sam run in. His eyes were as wide as his older brother's when he took in the situation and blood was running down his face where he was knocked out.

"I need your help!" Dean yelled, snapping him out of his shock.

Sam ran down, joining Dean at Jeremy's side.

"Carry him out, I'll get Elena. We have to get them to a hospital, now." Dean said.

Sam nodded and hoisted Jeremy up and over his shoulder with Dean's help. He ran to Elena and carefully scooped her up, breathing a sigh of relief when she let out a sharp breath, signalling that she was alive. They ran out, Sam holding a shotgun. Every time they came across a demon, Sam shot them and they ran on. When they got outside, Sam left Dean with the two Gilberts and ran off to steal a car. When they finally got in it, Sam used Jeremy's phone to find the nearest hospital.

Dean was in the back holding Elena in his arms as Jeremy was in the passenger seat passed out.

"Drive faster!" he yelled desperately.

* * *

"You found them?" Caroline said, sounding relieved.

"Yeah they're… they're not good." Sam sighed, looking into the hospital room.

Dean was sitting between their beds. Luckily, the hospital staff allowed them to share the room since they were related.

"What do you mean?" she said.

"You need to get here, Caroline. All of you need to get here. As quickly as you can." He sighed.

"We're on our way. Where is here?" the blonde vampire asked.

Sam gave her the location and she promised that they would all be there as quickly as they could despite the long drive it would take. When they hung up, Sam stared in the window. Dean was sitting there with his hand in Elena's. But his eyes were on Jeremy. A breathing tube was in his throat and he looked like he was already dead with his skin ghostly pale.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He whispered to the air.

Suddenly he heard a noise and turned to see Castiel standing there.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"Dean, listen." The angel sighed, stepping forward.

Sam saw him through the window and quickly rushed into the room.

"What do you want me to say?" Dean snapped. "He'll be dead by midnight."

He gestured to Jeremy.

"Elena has burns and… and cuts all over her back. She hasn't woken up yet. She was tortured, Cas. By your demon friends." he growled.

Sam simply stood there, watching.

"I'm sorry." The angel sighed. "I told Crowley not to hurt them."

"I don't care. It's too little, too late." Dean said, refusing to let the angel explain himself.

"Okay." Castiel nodded. "Well, regardless, I didn't come for you."

"Meaning?" Dean said, glancing up at him.

The angel walked to Jeremy and placed his hand on his head.

"He's fine now." He said before walking to Elena and placing his hand on her head as well.

Dean watched the way he lingered, looking down at her with devastating regret on his face.

"She'll wake soon. They both will." Castiel said, backing away from them.

He looked up at the hunter before glancing at Sam and back.

"I said I'm sorry and I meant it." he said.

Dean stood slowly, staring at the angel.

"Thank you." he breathed. "I wish this changed anything."

"I know." Castiel nodded. "So do I. All else aside, I just wanted to fix what I could."

He turned and started to walk away.

"There's one more thing you could do for me." Dean said, tears filling his eyes.

* * *

Sam met the group out in the front of the hospital. Bobby was already there so they were just waiting for the Mystic Falls bunch to show up. He was shocked to see three different cars pull up. Caroline, Bonnie, Alaric, Tyler, Matt, Damon, Stefan, Klaus, Elijah, Rebekah, Kol, and Finn all poured out.

"What…" he began, surprised to see them all.

"We all needed to make sure they were all right." Caroline said.

He glanced at the Originals questioningly.

"We have as much reason as anyone to be thankful to Elena. If there's anything we can do to help her, we'll do it."

"How are they?" Bonnie asked worredly.

Sam sighed before smiling slightly.

"Come see for yourself." He said.

The nurses began arguing that they weren't all allowed in but the Originals took care of it with compulsion much to everyone else's disapproval. When they arrived at the hospital room, everyone peered in and sighed with relief when they saw what was going on. Elena was sitting on Jeremy's bed stroking his hair and smiling at him. They were both in hospital gowns but both of them looked healthy. Dean was standing behind them looking relieved as Bobby sat in a chair.

"I thought you said they weren't doing well. We thought they were going to die." Caroline said, staring at Sam.

"They weren't. They were both really badly hurt. Fatally… but we got some help. They're fine now. They'll both be fine. But they don't remember." He said.

Almost everyone sighed with relief and, when Elena and Jeremy looked up and saw them, the former beckoned for them all to come in with a grin. Sam walked in behind the big group that crowded around the bed. He glanced at Dean over everyone and gestured to the door, communication clear in his eyes. Dean sighed and walked around, slipping out into the hallway with him.

"Well?" he said.

"Well nothing." Dean replied and Sam knew that he didn't want to talk about it.

But he wasn't letting his brother get off that easily. He sighed heavily.

"Dean, you know, you've pulled some shady crap before, but this…" he shook his head. "…has got to be the worst."

Dean stared back at him, his eyes full of exhaustion and emotion.

"Whitewashing their memories? Take it from somebody who knows…"

"If you ever mention this again, I will break your nose. They do not get to find out. They don't need to remember what happened in that warehouse. She was tortured. She doesn't need to remember that." He snapped, tears present in his eyes.

Sam knew that it was tearing him up, what he asked Cas to do. He knew how much Elena hated her mind being invaded and she would hate it if she found out that they'd taken memories from her and her brother.

"Dean." Sam sighed.

"I'm not kidding." He growled before shaking his head and wiping his eyes.

He moved past Sam and walked back into the room.

* * *

It was nighttime as she left the cabin and walked to her car. She approached the driver's door as she pressed the unlock button on the remote. She suddenly heard a branch snap behind her and her eyes lifted to see a man standing behind her in a blue tie and a trenchcoat. Elle turned around slowly and looked into his eyes, seeing that he was not going to be friendly. His hand reached out to touch her shoulder and suddenly the driveway was empty except for the car.

* * *

**For Everything a Reason – Carina Round**

It baffled the doctors and nurses and they simply said that the wounds must have looked worse than they were. Luckily Cas hadn't healed all of Elena's wounds to make it believable. So when they were discharged, it was nighttime and they all immediately went to a motel to stay the night. Sam was stuck in a room with Bobby, leaving Elena and Dean alone in a room together. He was fussing over her, even though she'd long since healed the rest of her wounds. As he puttered around the room getting her blankets and coffee and food, Elena watched him with a slight smile.

"Dean… stop." She grabbed his hand and pulled him on the bed with her, curling into his side. "This is what I need."

He sighed, holding her close to him as he closed his eyes. Her destroyed appearance when he found her flashed through his mind and he almost wished that he asked Cas to erase his memories as well.

"Dean?"

He looked down to see her looking up at him.

"Yeah?" he replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

Elena sat up with a worried expression.

"Are you sure you're all right?" she asked, reaching out to stroke his face.

"Yeah… I just… got scared." He admitted.

"I know. I'm sorry." She sighed, leaning forward to kiss his forehead. "I'm just grateful that we were unconscious while they had us there. Who knows what they would have done to us if we were awake?"

Dean's eyes flashed to her and he nodded.

"Yeah. Who knows?" he said hoarsely, trying to look relieved.

"So Balthazar helped you?" Elena asked, sitting back and crossed her legs Indian style.

"Yep. He brought us to the warehouse where they were keeping you but he couldn't come in. There were angel-proofing sigils all over the place." Dean explained, sitting up as well.

Elena took his hand and began messing with it, drawing on his palm and fidgeting with his fingers.

"Not Cas?" she asked softly.

He sighed and shook his head.

"No, not Cas. He, uh, he offered to help… but only if we stopped trying to figure out a way to stop them." He said unwillingly, knowing that it would hurt her but he had to tell her the truth about this one thing.

He was proven right when he looked up to see a tear sliding down her cheek.

"It's my fault, Dean." She whimpered.

He looked confused.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

She looked up at him and he saw her lip trembling.

"I didn't go to Mystic Falls the other night when I said I did. I lied. I went to Cas. I heard him out… he told me everything. Every time he lied to us... every time he deceived us. All of the shit he had to go through alone. It's my fault." She said.

"How is it your fault?" he demanded.

"He was good before he met us, Dean. He was… loyal. He didn't lie. He didn't deceive. He was… pure. We ruined him. I ruined him. I convinced him to rebel. We taught him how to lie. He didn't even know what it was before we showed him. We gave him everything he needed to pull this off. It's my fault." She said, more tears sliding down her cheeks.

"You listen to me, Cas made this decision. It is not our fault. We didn't force him into this. We made it clear that we were here for him how many times? He's the one who chose to refuse our help. He chose this path. We gave him an option to leave it… several options. He said no. We did everything we could. Now we… now we have to stop him." Dean said.

"How? By killing him?" Elena whimpered, looking devastated.

"It might come to that." he sighed.

"I can't do it, Dean. I can't look into his eyes and kill him. Can you?" she asked.

"I don't know." He said, his eyes burning as he tried to fight back his emotions. "I don't know."

* * *

**Authors Note: Oh the emotions. I got sad after writing this. I will follow up with happiness! I promise! **

**A few things:**

**1. Any more questions? Send them to me.**

**2. I will give you a hint, the archangels not showing up IS an important plot point. Pay close attention.**

**3. We only have two chapters left (isn't it crazy?)**

**4. The Azazel Petrova deal plotline will not be resolved immediately in this part of the series. I specifically set it up to continue into the next series so I'm sorry but you'll have to wait to learn about it. It will be a slow burn thing cause that's how I roll (never saying that again). But it will be resolved. I won't forget about it.**

**5. PLEASE REVIEW!**


	27. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**Thanks to Dark-Supernatural-Angel, SwanQueen4055, JMHUW, CherrySin, RippahGoneWolf, Flaca514, Dean Winchester Rocks, xxPaige23xx, DrawingMyHeartOut, Elena Gilbert 14, Nyssandria.**

**A few things:**

**1. This chapter is entirely made up by me. I've never been to the town that it takes place in so I have no idea if any of what I write is true.**

**2. Sorry if this chapter is weird. It is literally just my imagination at work. The beginning might be a little choppy but the rest of the story should flow better. Matt and Alaric aren't in this chapter.**

**3. There are a lot of outfits on my profile for the chapter for girls and guys. I suggest you go look at them because they are very reflective of what is going on. sorry for the men's outfits, I couldn't think of anything else and I think all of the guys look hot in suits. **

**4. I'm sorry but this chapter is not going to be incredibly long. I have a lot of finals and papers and stuff going on and if I try to make it long, it'll only end up taking another two weeks to write.**

* * *

_Dean groaned, sitting up slowly. He glanced around to find the room empty._

"_Hello?" he said with uncertainty, picking himself up off the ground. _

_He felt that the clothing he was wearing was much different than the clothing he'd gone to sleep wearing. He looked down and his eyes widened._

"_What the hell?" he grumbled, looking around to see if there were any other clues as to what was going on. _

_He certainly hadn't gone to sleep in these clothes and he hadn't gone to sleep in an otherwise empty room. That's when he remembered that everyone had been in their room and he hadn't exactly gone to sleep willingly. His bag was gone along with Elena and Sam's so he couldn't even change clothes. He stood slowly and stumbled to the door, pulling it open and hiding his eyes against the bright hallway outside._

* * *

"Are you sure?" Dean asked for the thousandth time.

"I am positive. We have been sitting around for a week trying to find something on how to keep Cas and Crowley from opening purgatory and we've found absolutely nothing. We are driving ourselves insane with nonstop research and we need a break. It's not like I'm asking you to stop working. We're going to take care of a case." Elena said from next to him.

They were in the Impala with Sam and Bobby folded into the backseat.

"She's right, Dean. You've been growlin' at us all week. We need a break from your foul mood." Bobby said.

Dean glared at him in the rearview mirror and Bobby smirked back.

"This is a good thing, Dean. We all need something to take our mind off of everything." Elena said.

"But…"

"Do you really think that opening purgatory will be a small or quiet event? There will be signs before it even happens and we have hunters all over the country looking out. All I'm asking for is a few days." She begged, looking up at him with a pleading gaze.

He sighed and nodded, glancing in his rearview mirror again.

"Did we absolutely have to bring the caravan?" he grumbled.

Elena smiled, biting her lip.

"I love you." she sighed, leaning in and kissing his cheek.

"I love you too… even though you and your posse are a pain in my ass." He replied, looking over at her.

"Look at the road." Bobby and Sam said at the same time, neither of them amused.

Elena grinned wider as he turned back to look at the road with a roll of his eyes. She reached out and turned up the music just as the song switched to a new one.

**Thunderstruck – AC/DC**

"Oh God." The two males in the backseat both said, knowing what was coming as the music played loudly.

"Thunder!" Elena and Dean shouted at the same time as he drummed on the steering wheel.

Elena did the same on the dashboard, giggling.

"I was caught in the middle of a railroad track!" Dean sang in a high-pitched voice.

"Thunder!" Elena sang back.

"I looked round and I knew there was no turning back!"

"Thunder!"

Bobby rolled his eyes as Sam joined in, mimicking Angus Young's guitar playing.

"My mind raced and I thought what could I do!" Dean continued.

"Thunder!"

"And I knew there was no help, no help from you!"

"Thunder!"

"Sound of the drums beatin' in my heart!" Elena sang loudly as the boys played out the drums and guitar.

The oldest hunter couldn't help but smile slightly at their silly actions.

"The thunder of guns tore me apart!" Elena turned dramatically to look at Dean, pointing at him. "You've been… thunderstruck!"

* * *

"What the hell is this place?" Dean asked as they drove through it.

"Celebration." Elena answered.

"What?" the three males said.

"Celebration, Florida." She said, pointing at the sign.

They all stared at it.

"Elena… did you bring us to Disney World?" Bobby grumbled, seeing the recognizable mouse ears on the sign.

"Nope. But we aren't far from it. Maybe we can make a pit stop after we solve the case." Elena answered.

She looked around the town with a grin at the picturesque setting.

"It's beautiful." she breathed.

Dean looked over at her and smiled at the momentary happiness on her face. For the past week, they'd all been in various states of unhappiness. Now they were getting a break. It was a good thing… he hoped.

* * *

"You have got to be kidding me." he said, looking around the hotel that they were staying in.

"Stop it." Elena murmured.

"This place is…"

"Stop it." she repeated, turning his face to look at her. "They offered to pay for our hotel and we're not exactly in a crappy motel kind of place."

Dean glanced over at the desk where Elijah and Klaus were checking into their multitude of rooms.

"I don't have to like it." he informed her.

"I never said you did. But please go with it." Elena pleaded.

"Hey…" Sam walked up to them with a suspicious look on his face. "… for a town that's so close to Disney World, doesn't this very nice hotel look a little… bare to you?" he asked.

They glanced around and found that the large lobby was almost completely empty except for them.

"Maybe everyone is just somewhere else." Elena shrugged.

"No I asked someone. We are the only guests in the entire hotel. They were relieved when we showed up because they thought they weren't going to get any revenue this weekend. Apparently it's the same for the other two hotels in town. Empty." He said.

Elena looked at Dean hesitantly.

"Okay maybe it is weird." She admitted. "I guess there might be something more than a few disappearances and freak storms in this town."

"We'll keep an eye out." Dean said.

She turned to see the Originals all staring at them as well as Caroline and Tyler. They must have heard. They all nodded as if to say that they would watch out as well. Elena smiled gratefully at them.

"Let's all get settled and we can split up, walk around, and ask questions." she suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Dean nodded.

* * *

Elena and Dean were walking with Sam, Caroline, Tyler, Jeremy, and Bonnie. So far, no one had been willing to talk to them about the disappearances though they were perfectly friendly and willing to talk about anything else.

"Is it just me or is this town a little… strange?" Caroline asked.

"There's something going on… on my side of things." Bonnie said, squinting around. "I can feel it. There is someone powerful that is cooking something up."

"A witch?" Sam asked.

She nodded slowly.

"Great." Dean sighed.

"Should we leave? If there's something big coming, do we really want to be caught in the middle?" Jeremy asked.

"We can't just leave, especially if more people are disappearing. This is our job, Jer. You guys can go back to Mystic Falls if you want. We won't make you stay. But we have to stick around, right?" Elena said, looking up at Dean.

"Yeah, right." he agreed even though she could see his hatred of witches (except for Bonnie, of course) in his eyes.

"If we end up cursed, I'm blaming you Elena Gilbert." Caroline said in an accusing tone.

"You have free reign to blame me." Elena replied with a nod.

* * *

"… so then Dean, being the reckless idiot I knew he would be, dared her to bite him." Elena said.

"But I took a shot of the phoenix ash with some whiskey so it was in my bloodstream." Dean continued, smirking.

"And that's the story about how we killed one of the oldest creatures to ever walk the earth." Sam finished off.

They were all gathered in one of the hotel rooms, because it was large enough to accommodate them all, and eating food and swapping stories.

"That's dramatic. How did you get rid of the rest of… what did you call them?" Caroline asked, furrowing her brow.

"Jefferson Starships." All three answered, Sam and Elena with a roll of their eyes and Dean with a proud grin.

"Right. How did you get rid of the rest of those?" she questioned.

Elena looked down at her hands as Dean, Bobby, and Sam all exchanged uncertain looks.

"Cas helped with getting rid of them." Elena finally said softly.

"Oh yeah, where is that angel of yours?" Klaus wondered, still bitter about the several times that Cas had kicked his ass into compliance.

"He's not here." Dean said gruffly.

Everyone's eyes scanned over the four hunters with surprised and questioning looks.

"Did something happen with him, Lena?" Jeremy asked, reaching out to take her hand.

"Yeah, Jer. Something happened. It's, uh… it's complicated. I would rather not talk about it." she said softly.

"Maybe we should…" Sam began.

"No. Cas is off the rails and we don't know what he's going to do. Dean practically declared war on him and Crowley so there is absolutely nothing to keep them from using any of my family and friends against us. Crowley already tried it with Jeremy so don't tell me it won't happen again. He even took the Originals offguard so no, we're not getting them involved. I'm sorry, guys. You're going to have to sit this one out. We'll get you involved in the next one." Elean said sternly.

They all stared at her.

"Can you at least tell us what's going on?" Bonnie asked. "I think we deserve that much."

Elena sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Fine, but I'm not gonna be here to hear about it. I'll go get us some more drinks. We're almost out. Sam?" she said, standing up.

"I'll tell." He nodded.

"Hey." Dean caught her hand and stood as well. "We'll go."

Her eyes flickered past him to the group who were all looking at her with apologetic gazes.

"Yeah, okay." She agreed.

They walked out of the hotel room but Dean stopped her before she could go any further.

"Hey, I know that you're using this case as a distraction and that's great. I'm all in favor. Honestly if we weren't here I know we'd all be drinking back at Bobby's so this is probably the healthier option. It's a good idea. Honestly until they brought up Cas, I forgot for a while. But you haven't forgotten. You aren't distracted. You're sad and I can see that."

Elena opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off with a finger on her lips. She moved willingly as he pressed her against the wall and put his hands on either side of her head, leaning in close so that their lips were barely brushing.

"I don't know how to help you. Tell me how to help you." he pleaded and he sounded as broken as she felt.

Elena sighed and slid her hands into his hair, looking in his eyes.

"In the other universe where the Titanic didn't sink, I… I was on board with Cas' plan. I was going to help him do it. I didn't remember my reasoning until a few days ago. I remembered that I didn't want him to do it alone. I wanted to be there to bring him back from the brink. I didn't like the plan but I sure as hell wasn't going to leave Cas to kill himself." She said softly.

"There's nothing wrong with that." Dean assured her. "You think of Cas as family just like the rest of us."

Elena pressed her lips together and looked away.

"I'm not going to give up on him, Dean. I can't. Not after… not after everything we've been through. We've all made mistakes. I am not going to give up on Castiel because he made this one. I understand if you don't feel the same way. I won't do it." she ranted.

Dean's hand captured her chin and he turned her head to look up at him.

"Killing Cas is a last resort. We'll try everything else, I promise. He's still Cas and maybe we can reason with him some more. I don't know. We'll figure something out though, okay?"

Elena nodded, pulling him in to kiss her deeply. He pressed her back against the wall again and his hands went to her hips, pushing her shirt up slightly. Her hands tugged at his hair softly and their lips moved against each other.

"Thank you." she breathed when they broke apart momentarily.

"For?" he murmured back.

"Being you." Elena said simply.

Before they could resume their kissing, they felt something. The ground was rumbling slightly as well as the walls.

"What the hell?" Dean said, glancing around.

The door to the room ripped open and Sam stumbled out with a panicked expression.

"You need to come see this." he said, not bothering to grimace at their position against the wall.

Dean and Elena shared a questioning gaze before following him as the rumbling got louder and rougher. Everyone was gathered at the windows with panicked expressions, even the Originals. When they ran up, they saw what they were looking at. Their windows had a view over the water. A dark blue mist seemed to be spreading out of it into the streets of the town. It was rising up as well, climbing the buildings and invading them. It was getting closer to their level.

"What the hell is that?" Rebekah demanded.

"Get away from the windows." Dean said.

They all backed away with wide eyes as the smoke peeked over the edge of the windows. Suddenly they bursted open and they stumbled backwards as the smoke creeped into the room.

"Bonnie?" Elena said, looking at the witch.

"I have no idea. It's… it's powerful." She stammered, obviously afraid.

"Run!" Sam decided and he shoved his way to the door, opening it.

Caroline and Elena let out startled cries when they saw the smoke out in the hallway.

"Run where?" Bobby grumbled, glancing around.

No one had any answer.

"Elena this is not fun anymore!" Caroline screeched as they stumbled into the middle of the room, trying to avoid the approaching smoke from all sides.

"You're not fucking kidding!" Elena shot back, gripping Dean and Jeremy's hands.

"If we die, I'm coming back to haunt all your asses." Damon growled.

"We'll all be ghosts, idiot!" Dean snapped back.

"Then we'll have a grand time haunting each other." Klaus said with a smirk.

"Shut up Klaus!" everyone else chorused.

That was the last any of them heard.

* * *

Dean groaned, sitting up slowly. He glanced around to find the room empty.

"Hello?" he said with uncertainty, picking himself up off the ground.

He felt that the clothing he was wearing was much different than the clothing he'd gone to sleep wearing. He looked down and his eyes widened.

"What the hell?" he grumbled, looking around to see if there were any other clues as to what was going on.

He certainly hadn't gone to sleep in these clothes and he hadn't gone to sleep in an otherwise empty room. That's when he remembered that everyone had been in their room and he hadn't exactly gone to sleep willingly. His bag was gone along with Elena and Sam's so he couldn't even change clothes. He stood slowly and stumbled to the door, pulling it open and hiding his eyes against the bright hallway outside.

"Elena? Sammy?" he said loudly.

No one answered.

"Anyone?"

He walked out into the hallway and found it empty. The elevators didn't work so he took the stairs all the way down to the lobby, which was also empty.

"What is going?" he muttered, walking out of the doors onto the street.

"Dean!" he whirled around to see a bright red cape connected to someon familiar rushing to him.

Caroline looked relieved when she saw him, stopping short and putting her hand on his shoulder. She was holding a pair of red high heels in her hand.

"What the hell is going on?" she breathed.

"That's what I'd like to know. What are you wearing?" Dean asked, looking at her outfit.

"Exactly! I don't know! I woke up in the forest. On the ground in the middle of a bunch of trees and…"

Dean heard a low growl and he peeked around her to see two wolves padding up to her.

"There! These two were with me! They won't stop following me! I'm trying to run away from them! What if they're werewolves, Dean? I'm a vampire! They could kill me with a single bite!" she screeched.

Dean watched carefully as the two wolves sat on either side of her with calm looks.

"I don't think they're gonna attack you. I think they're protecting you." he said slowly, glancing between them.

One of the wolves had dark brown eyes and the other had bright blue eyes. They almost looked familiar but he couldn't figure it out.

"Caroline? Dean?"

They turned to see Elijah, Kol, and Finn walking towards them. They were in fancy suits just like Dean.

"What happened?" Elijah questioned.

"That's what we'd like to know." Caroline sighed.

"Where did you wake up?" Dean asked.

"By the river, all of us." Finn answered.

"Yes and did you know that there are mer…" Kol was cut off by a person appearing in front of them with extreme speed.

"What the hell is going on?" Rebekah spat angrily.

"That seems to be the important question." Dean said, looking to see that she was wearing a fancy dress like Caroline.

Only in her case, she was only carrying one shoe.

"Can someone explain to me why I woke up in the middle of an alley beside a pumpkin with a few rats crawling around me and one damn ugly shoe?" the blonde Original demanded, holding up the sparkly shoe.

"Sounds like a party, Bekah." Kol said, smirking.

"Shove it, brother." she shot back.

Dean sighed, running his hands through his hair.

"Has anyone seen Sam or Elena or Bobby?" he asked.

"Or Klaus or Jeremy or Bonnie?" Elijah added.

"Or Tyler." Caroline threw in.

"Erm…"

They all looked at Rebekah, who was inspecting the wolves at Caroline's side.

"I think that's Nik."

She pointed to the blue-eyed wolf. They all inspected it as the wolf stared back. It suddenly looked far too familiar.

"That's Klaus?" Caroline said, staring down at the animal.

Then she glanced over at the other wolf and looked into his eyes.

"Oh my God… Tyler." She breathed.

"Okay I'm going to ask again… what the hell?" Rebekah repeated.

"Wait a minute…" Dean said, something familiar about the situation with both Caroline and Rebekah.

"Dean." A voice interrupted his thoughts and he turned to see Sam, Bonnie, and Jeremy walking towards them.

The two males were supporting the witch as her eyes fluttered continuously as if she was struggling to stay awake. Bonnie was also in a fancy dress and Jeremy and Sam were in suits just like the rest of the men.

"What's wrong with her?" Caroline asked, concerned.

"She won't stop trying to fall asleep." Jeremy said, shaking her awake as she tried to snooze on his shoulder. "I'm really worried about her."

"I'm just tired." Bonnie grumbled.

Sam looked at Dean.

"I woke up in the dining room of the hotel. They were coming down from the stairs. They woke up in another hotel room. Dean what's going on? Where's Bobby and Elena?"

"I don't know where they are but I think I may have a theory." Dean said.

"What?" everyone asked at once.

Even the wolves peered up at him curiously.

"That spell last night, it did whatever is going on right now." He said.

"No shit, Sherlock." Rebekah snapped.

He glared at her, silencing her once more.

"But think about where we are. I mean, we're, what, ten miles away from fairytale land?" he said.

They all nodded.

"Well think about it. I don't know if anything is going on with the males… other than the transformation… but think about what's going on with you three." Dean pointed at Caroline, Bonnie, and Rebekah.

"Caroline woke up in the forest with a red cloak and wolves."

Realization dawned in the blonde vampire's eyes.

"Little Red Riding Hood. The big bad wolf. But why aren't they trying to attack me? In the story, the wolf tries to kill me."

Dean shrugged and looked at Rebekah.

"You woke up next to a pumpkin with a bunch of mice around you… with one shoe?" he said to the vampire.

"Yeah? What of it?" she replied.

"He has a point Bekah, doesn't that sound a bit… fairytale to you?" Kol said.

"And Bonnie can barely keep herself awake." Sam pointed out, following Dean's line of thinking.

"You think we're in… fairytales?" Elijah questioned.

"That would explain the mermaids." Kol said.

All of their heads snapped to him.

"The what?" Rebekah questioned.

"Come look."

They walked to the big lake that was in the middle of the town. The wolves trailed behind Caroline obediently. Sure enough, there were somehow mermaids splashing around in the water carelessly.

"What the hell?" Dean breathed.

They all heard a different noise and looked to see a red-headed young woman sobbing on a rock with a small white and tattered dress on.

"You've got to be kidding me." Caroline said.

"Let me guess… Little Mermaid." Sam said, looking as shocked as the rest of them.

"This is the weirdest thing that's ever happened to me. And I live in Mystic Falls." Jeremy muttered, shaking Bonnie awake once more.

Suddenly Dean felt a tug on his shoulder and looked down to see a little girl with fairy wings sprouting out of her back. Her eyes were big and blue. She gestured for him to bend down and he did so.

"I know how to break the spell." She whispered.

"Spell?" Dean asked questioningly.

"The evil witch casted it. She wanted to be the princess but she forgot that the stories never go like that. The bad witch is never the pretty princess." The little girl said softly.

"Okay…" he didn't really know what to say.

"You have to kiss the pretty princess." The young girl informed him.

Dean stared at her for a moment.

"Okay… why me?" he asked, amused and disbelieving.

"Because you're the prince." She said simply.

Before he knew it, she was placing a crown on his head. He stood up with shock, reaching up to take it off.

"Don't take it off or the magic won't work! You have to wear it to be the prince!" she argued.

"What are you talking about?" Dean asked.

She glanced around before looking back at him.

"The princess is in the forest. You have to find her." she said before turning to run off, her wings flapping but not doing much else.

"What the hell? The forest? A princess?" he said, touching the crown on his head without taking it off.

"Yeah good luck with that. We're surrounded by forest." Caroline scoffed.

"What?" They all said, staring at her.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. Yeah there aren't any roads in or out of here. We're trapped." The blonde said, looking guilty.

"You didn't think to mention that?" Rebekah asked through gritted teeth.

"I'm sorry. I was a little distracted by the fact that I'm Red fucking Riding Hood!" Caroline shot back.

"Oh you poor girl. I'm Cinder-fucking-ella! I woke up in an alley with rats! You woke up with my brother and your boyfriend following you like puppies!" the other blonde vampire growled.

"This is not how I imagined Disney Princesses talking." Sam murmured.

"At least Bonnie's asleep again so she can't ruin Sleeping Beauty." Dean replied, gesturing to Jeremy who was holding Bonnie up with an annoyed look.

"I think I'm just going to take her to lie down until this blows over. Is that all right?" he asked.

"Did you ever think that maybe the witch made her Sleeping Beauty because Bonnie is the only one that can stop all of this, being a witch herself. Maybe we're supposed to let her sleep because she is the only one who can help." Kol suggested.

They all stared at the sleeping witch hesitantly.

"How about we try the princess in the woods thing first? Maybe the little girl was telling the truth." Dean sighed, rubbing his forehead and scratching at his skin under the annoying as hell crown.

They all nodded in agreement. Bonnie woke up just before Jeremy turned to walk her off.

"Elena is the princess." She murmured before falling back asleep.

Jeremy left them with those words and, at Elijah's encouragement, Kol and Finn followed to keep them safe from anything that might come. Before they could say another word, a black-haired man ran up to them with a panicked expression.

"Have you seen my ship? I cannot find it anywhere." He said desperately.

They all stared at him before Caroline stepped forward.

"Let me guess… your name is Eric?" she asked.

He nodded slowly, looking confused.

"All right buddy, I'm about to do you a favor. Do you see that crying girl over there? The redhead." He followed Caroline's finger and caught sight of her.

"Yes, she looks distressed." Eric said.

"Yeah she does. Her name is Ariel and she needs your help. She has no voice so don't get the wrong idea when she doesn't say anything." She said.

"Does she know where my ship is?" he asked, looking at the blonde curiously.

"She might. But you have to give her voice back for her to tell you." Caroline said.

"How do I do that?" he questioned.

"Fall in love. Go get 'em champ." Dean patted his shoulder and sent him running off with a panicked look.

"Okay now how the hell are we supposed to find Elena in the forest if we're surrounded by nothing but forest?" Sam asked.

"I… uh…"

Suddenly he felt something tugging at his mind.

"What the…"

He suddenly got the urge to walk in a certain direction and he felt as though he knew what was happening.

"I know where to go." Dean announced.

"How?" Sam asked, confused.

"I think that Elena is calling to me, pulling me in the right direction." He explained.

"That's not creepy at all." Rebekah grumbled.

"You should stay behind, see if anyone around the town needs help. We have no idea what else could be going on. Not all of the fairytales are particularly nice ones. Like Hansel and Gretel… go make sure that no kids are being eaten." Dean suggested.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Caroline asked.

"I'll take Sam with me." Dean assured her. "We'll take the Impala."

They walked to the parking lot and Dean quickly discovered that they were not, in fact, going to take the Impala considering it wasn't there.

"Where the hell is my car?" he yelled, turning in circles.

"Uh Dean… I think that's your car." Sam said, pointing.

He turned to see a horse standing in the parking space. It had a sleek black appearance and was staring straight at them. A dark brown horse stood next to it.

"That bitch turned my car into a horse?" he growled.

Sam fought back a smirk.

"Looks like it." he said simply.

"I freaking hate witches!"

* * *

"This is stupid!" Dean yelled as they rode through the forest, dodging trees, on the horses.

"We could be walking." Sam shot back, bouncing uncomfortably on his own horse.

"I better get my baby back unscathed or I will kill the witch again." He grumbled.

They came to a clearing filled with wildflowers and Dean saw something glint in the sunlight. That was when he saw the platform covered in flowers with a figure lying on it in a white dress with long brown, gleaming curls. Another familiar person was pacing in front of the platform.

"Bobby!" Dean stopped the horse and jumped off, running up to him with Sam not far behind.

He turned to face them and sighed with relief.

"It's about time you idjits got here! Every time I tried to leave this clearing the trees all closed up and wouldn't let me. What the hell is going on?" He demanded.

He was the only one of them that managed to retain his normal outfit.

"A spell, we think." Dean said, walking to the platform and looking down at Elena figure.

She was pale… too pale.

"Dean… she's… she ain't breathing." Bobby said unwillingly.

Dean glanced back at him, shaking his head.

"She's not dead." He said.

"But…"

"We're in fairytales, Bobby. She's not dead." Sam assured him.

"Fairytales?" the hunter asked skeptically.

Dean wasn't paying them any mind. He reached out and stroked Elena's cheek. Her skin was ice cold. His eyes drifted up to the sparkling tiara sitting on her head. She looked like a princess. Her lips were blood red for some reason where the rest of her body was white as a sheet. Her dress looked almost like a lacy wedding dress and he could see very sparkly shoes on her feet. He turned his attention back to her lips and hesitantly drifted closer to them.

"Stop!" a voice screeched.

They all turned to see a woman standing there glaring at them. She was wearing long black, tatty robes and her skin was wrinkly and a mole sat on her cheek.

"This is not how it's supposed to happen! I am supposed to be the princess! I am supposed to have the happy ending!" she yelled, gesturing an old wooden staff around.

"Let me guess… the witch." Dean said, straightening up.

"I casted this spell so that I could get the happy ending! I wanted the prince! I wanted the crown!" she glared past him at Elena's prone figure.

"Sorry witch, you chose the wrong character to play. The bad guys don't get to play a pretty princess." Dean shrugged.

She glared at him, anger flashing in her eyes.

"If I don't get Prince Charming by being the princess, I'll make you mine by force." She said, raising her staff.

Sam suddenly launched forward and began grappling with her for the stick. Bobby ran forward as well, trying to figure out a way to help.

"Kiss her, Dean!" Sam yelled as the witch spat curses at him.

The older Winchester whirled around and looked down at Elena again.

"Here goes nothin." He sighed before bending down and pressing his lips to hers.

It didn't take long, mere moments, for her skin to warm underneath his. He felt her chest expand as she inhaled through her nose and her hand lifted to tangle in his hair. He pulled away slowly to see her eyes open and imploring. The ground began rumbling and shaking just like it had before. Elena's eyes widened and he held onto her as the scene shifted around them. Suddenly they were both on a bed. He could still hear Sam and Bobby fighting with the witch in their room. They let out startled cries and Dean and Elena looked up to see them backing away from the witch who no longer looked like a witch.

"She's just a kid." Dean said, surprised.

"I'm sixteen! I'm tired of being bullied and made fun of for being ugly. They told me I would never get a prince. I want a prince!" she said, glaring around at them.

"So you used magic to change everyone into fairytale characters?" Sam asked.

"I wanted to be pretty for once. But just because you broke the spell doesn't mean I can't get my way." the girl said, raising her hands.

Elena was suddenly gone from the bed. She appeared in front of the witch and pressed her hand to her forehead. The girl fell unconscious on the ground. Elena stood slowly, sighing as she minded the long dress she was wearing. Then a frown appeared on her face and she turned to Dean. Her hand lifted to her head and she felt the tiara sitting on it.

"Dean? Why am I wearing a crown? Why are you wearing a crown? What the hell happened?"

* * *

"Are you ever taking that off?" Caroline asked, laughing.

"Nope." Elena replied, reaching up to touch the tiara that was still sitting on her head.

They were all lounging around the same hotel room again, this time certain that nothing was going to happen. It turned out that the disappearances that were happening were people that made fun of the young witch the most at school, a mix of teachers and students. They were all found wandering around the forest, apparently having been put there wandering around with a spell cast to make sure they never left. When they destroyed the witch's spellbook, all of the other spells she casted ceased to exist. Then Elena did a little tweaking in her mind to make her forget that she was ever a witch. The town, after the Originals went from person to person, didn't remember anything that happened.

It had been hilarious to see the looks on Klaus's and Tyler's faces when they woke up completely naked at Caroline's side. Elena wasn't the only one keeping a souvenier from the experience. Caroline was still wearing her red cloak and Rebekah found her other shoe, vowing to keep them both. The men all kept their suits in case they would need them again.

"I would be happy if I never saw or read a fairytale again." Bonnie announced.

Everyone except for Elena murmured in agreement.

"Well that's too bad." She sighed.

They all looked at her.

"Why?" they asked with uncertainty.

She grinned slowly.

"Because I have… an idea."

* * *

"I can't believe you convinced everyone to do this." Dean said, pulling Elena into his side.

"I can't believe I convinced Klaus to put on Mickey Mouse ears." She said proudly, grinning over at the disgruntled hybrid.

"I believe that you threatened him in order to pull that off." he reminded her.

"Oh… yeah." She laughed and her joyful smile made his own smile wider.

"All right everyone, if we're doing this, we're doing it right." Caroline said, pulling everyone into a position in front of the large Cinderella castle. "Mickey Mouse ears on!"

The three male hunters and the male vampires scowled but put them on anyways. A Disney World employee offered to take the picture for them and Caroline dove into the group, positioning herself beside Tyler and grinning widely.

"Say cheese!" the man said, holding up the camera.

"Cheese!" half the group said, the other half rolling their eyes at the thought.

Elena pulled Dean down for a kiss, her eyes telling him how grateful that she was that he'd agreed to this side-trip.

"Oh my God! Elena! Bonnie! There's Mickey Mouse! We have to go take pictures!" Caroline seized their wrists and dragged them over to the character.

* * *

**Author's Note: Once again, I'm sorry that it was short. I just didn't have time to write it as long as I could have without it taking forever. The next chapter should be out by Saturday. Sorry for the long time between updates but I'm so very busy. The poll with the next part's songs should be coming out in the next chapter so be sure to put your vote in your review.**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	28. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer I do not own TVD or Supernatural**

**I'm not going to list everyone this time. I just going to say thanks to everyone who has reviewed this whole story and the past two stories as well. You are all amazing. I love you. **

**A few things: **

**1. I don't know how many people have actually seen this episode. I just want to warn you that it might get confusing. Just keep reading and it will be explained.**

**2. Elena makes a surprising, questionable choice that might surprise you. It might not, I don't know. **

**3. Elena's outfit is on my profile. **

**4. You know the drill, Carry On My Wayward Son, people.**

**5. As always, there is a helluva shock at the end. Prepare yourselves.**

* * *

He was running. His vision was blurred and his mind was racing. He had no idea what was going on or where he was running to. A police car was chasing him, it's sirens blaring loudly. He dove into an alley way and tried to open a door. It was locked. He ran to a gate and kicked it open, hiding behind a wall as the police car passed. When it was long gone, he slipped out from his hiding place. creeping along the wall of the alley, he found a door labeled, **Delivery Entrance Only**. He tried the doorknob and found it unlocked. Breathing a sigh of relief, he entered. He immediately found that he was in a bar. The woman wiping down the counter with a rag looked up at him.

"Hey, we're closed." She said, looking at him with an unimpressed look.

"Just uh, just give me a second." He pleaded, rushing to the window.

"Look pal, we… we open at noon." The woman said impatiently.

"Look, you don't understand." He said, turning to face her.

Outside, the cop car passed the window slowly, a light shining into the building. He stumbled away and realization dawned in the woman's eyes.

"Okay, I… I think I understand just fine. Look I don't need this kind of hassle. So seriously, just get the hell out." she said, pointing at the door.

"Please. Please, just give me a minute to think, that's all. Then I'm out of your hair." He begged as she pulled a baseball bat out.

"One minute. Please." He said trying to catch his breath.

The woman stared at him for a minute before setting the bat down with a sigh.

"What's your name?" she asked.

He hesitated.

"I don't know." He admitted.

"What do you mean you don't know?" She demanded.

"I mean I don't remember. I don't remember anything."

She stared at him, her eyes squinting at him. Then she gestured for him to sit down and grabbed a beer, opening it for him.

"Come on, you're dickin' with me. Nothing?" she asked, leaning over the counter with crossed arms.

"I'm telling you. Blank slate." He said before taking a drink.

"Well, you got a wallet? ID?" she questioned.

"I wish I did." he sighed.

"Okay, well what's the last thing you remember?" the woman, Robin, questioned.

"Um, I woke up on a park bench, cops shoving a flashlight in my face, trying to take me in." he said, shaking his head.

"So you ran." Robin said.

"No, I, um, I knocked 'em out cold. Both of 'em." She stared at him with wide eyes. "No, look, I… I didn't mean to. It just happened really fast, you know I think instinct or something, I guess."

"That's some instinct." She sighed, backing away again.

"Yeah, tell me about it. I mean, who even knows how to do something like that?" he wondered.

"We'll get you to the ER. The quacks will hash it out." Robin said.

"No." he refused, shaking his head.

"Try yeah. Look the-the bats have flown the belfry, you need to see a doctor." She informed him.

"No." he stood up looking around . "I don't have time."

"Time for what?" Robin demanded.

"Look, it's hard to explain, I just feel like I… I have to be somewhere. There's something I gotta stop."

"Oh, like a wedding? A train?" she asked, trying to get any information that she could.

He turned back to face her.

"No, something important. Something like life or death, like…" his brow was furrowed as he tried to figure it out.

"Okay, hey, hey, hey. Just relax, you know, you… you can't poop it out, so just... it'll come to you." she assured him.

He looked around the bar with a nod, noticing something strange. There was a bookcase in the bar. What was a bookcase doing in a bar? He walked to it with Robin following him with confusion. He picked up a certain book, somehow drawn to it.

_The Haunter of the Dark_ by H.P. Lovecraft.

"What is it?" Robin asked.

He showed her the title.

"You a horror fan?" she asked.

"Yeah, um, I think so. I really think so. Something… something about this..."

Suddenly a rush of images hit Sam.

_Phillips ain't his last name. It's Lovecraft._

_He said Elena and Jeremy keep breathing as long as we sit on our thumbs._

_Look, I kill enough of these demons, eventually one of 'em's gonna tell me where Crowley is._

_I know I'm gonna live to regret this… but I'm officially on your team. You bastards._

_They do not get to find out. They don't need to remember what happened in that warehouse. She was tortured. She doesn't need to remember that._

_When this is all over, I will save Sam, but only if you stand down._

Finally he saw one last vision of a motel called the 'Nite Owl'. When his eyes flashed open, he was slumped over a table with Robin in front of him.

"Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey. Seriously, we are taking you to a doctor." She said.

He looked up at her with wide eyes.

"Have you got a computer?" he asked.

"What?"

Minutes later, he found the Nite Owl's website on her computer.

"That's it. It exists. Look, two towns over." He turned the laptop so that she could see it.

"What, you think you're staying in this dump?" Robin asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Maybe." He shrugged.

"Oh, maybe you're a hooker." She said, smirking slightly.

He chuckled.

"I guess I'll find out."

He stood up and looked down at her, sighing.

"Look, um, I don't know how to say, uh, thanks for everything."

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked.

"I'll be fine." He assured her.

"Says the headcase that just slumped over a minute ago. Look, is there any way I can convince you to go to a hospital?"

"No. Apparently, I'm stubborn."

"Oh. So am I." she grabbed her jacket from behind the bar. "I'm driving."

"Look, that's really nice of you, but not necessary." He said, furrowing his brow at her.

"Really? Okay, look, your eggs are scrambled." She said, laughing without humor.

"But…"

"But nothing." Robin interrupted him.

"No, I mean I'm just some guy. I… I could be anybody. You gotta be nuts." He said, his eyes wide.

"I've been called that. Look, if I let you go off alone, I won't be able to sleep at night. And, honestly, I'm dying to know how it all turns out." she said before grinning.

* * *

They walked towards the hotel, looking up at the seedy place.

"So, uh, where do we start?" Robin asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Uh, ground floor corner room, nearest to the fire escape. That's the one I'd pick, quickest getaway." He recited as if from memory.

He could almost hear another man's voice saying that. A man with a lined face and a scruffy appearance. It sounded like a lecture from a long time ago.

"Any why do you know that?" Robin asked, turning to look at him with a raised eyebrow.

He scoffed, not knowing how to explain.

"I just do." He said as they walked inside.

They got to the corner room, room 107, and he knocked on it as Robin watched warily. No one answered. He tried the handle to find that it was locked.

"Hey, you got a credit card?" he asked her.

"Uh…" she dug out her card. "Why, are we uh, checking in?"

"Sort of." he took the card and effortlessly picked the lock with it before handing it back to her.

"Dude... Who are you?" she demanded.

"Good question." He sighed before they entered the room.

Various pictures, newspaper articles, and maps scattered the walls. They looked around them with wide eyes.

"This all yours?" Robin asked.

"I don't know. I guess." He said, staring at the pictures.

"Well, I love what you've done with the place. It's very Beautiful Mind meets Se7en." He looked at a her with a questioning glance. "Sorry, I talk when I'm nervous."

She picked an ID up from the table.

"Hey, well I guess we know your name. Nice to meet you, Jimmy Page." Robin said before noticing other ID's.

"And uh, Neil Peart, and Angus Young." She chuckled nervously. "Okay, listen no offence but I'm… I'm really starting to freak out."

He scoffed slightly, scared as well.

"You and me both." he sighed.

He noticed a newspaper article and squinted at it.

The headline read "SFU Professor Missing". The accompanying picture was of a pretty blonde middle-aged woman. Suddenly he felt the rush of memories hit him again and he collapsed, an entire scene unfolding before his head.

* * *

Elena, Dean, Sam, and Bobby walked down the alley with confusion. It was empty, which was strange.

"Where is she?" Dean asked, looking at Bobby.

The older hunter shrugged.

"She said to meet her here. I'll try her again."

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number. All of them froze when they heard a ringtone somewhere ahead of them. After exchanging a glance, they hurried forward and rounded it to see the woman huddled on the ground, her hands pressed to her stomach, hiding something. Bobby and Elena both kneeled in front of her as Sam and Dean hung back, watching with wide eyes.

"Elle?" Bobby said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

Elle's eyes fluttered open and flickered over all of their faces.

"Hey." She breathed, smiling slightly at Bobby. "I guess I could've used your help after all."

"Just be still." The hunter said, looking at her with devastated eyes at her pale appearance.

Her difficulty breathing combined with her white face told them all what was happening. She was dying.

"What happened?" Elena asked softly.

Elle's eyes went to her and she sighed.

"They took me. I got away."

Her coat fell open and revealed that her shirt was soaked with blood from her stomach.

"Oh, Ellie. What have they done to you?" Bobby said, a hint of anger in her voice.

The woman let out a soft chuckle.

"Everything. The demon I could've handled, but when the angel stepped in, I…" she sighed.

Dean and Sam exchanged an angry look as fury flashed through Bobby's eyes. Elena pushed her hands out of the way gently and hovered her hands over the wound. Elle stopped her, looking into her eyes.

"Conserve your strength. It won't do a thing. I'm from purgatory, I can't be healed with an angel's grace. I'm too unclean."

Elena bit her lip to keep it from trembling.

"I'm sorry I didn't help you. I wish… I wish I could now. I would tell you everything but there's no time. Keep searching. The answer is out there, Elena. I know you'll find out." she said, taking the young guardian's hand in hers.

"Thank you, Elle." Elena said, smiling at her.

Elle nodded before facing Bobby with tears in her eyes.

"I told him, Bobby. They have enough to crack Purgatory wide open." she whimpered.

"Tell me. I need to know." He urged her.

"They need virgin blood. That's a milk-run for them. And they need the blood of a Purgatory native, and well, they've got plenty of that now." Elle said, gesturing to her wound.

"Have they opened it yet?" Dean asked.

She shook her head.

"Tomorrow. The moon… an eclipse. I'm sorry, Bobby." She said, crying.

"No, it's okay. It's okay." He assured her, stroking her cheek.

Tears were running down Elena's face as well. She wished that she could save the woman. She deserved to be saved.

"I'm sorry, really sorr…" she cut off, her eyes fluttering as her breathing slowed.

"Tell us where they are." Bobby said, taking her other hand.

She let out one last breath and then she was gone.

"Elle?"

Elena reached out and closed her eyes, pulling Bobby into a hug as he stared at the woman's lifeless figure.

"I'm sorry this had to happen."

Their heads snapped up and they saw Cas standing behind Dean and Sam with a regretful look. Bobby and Elena both stood up, Bobby trembling with rage.

"Crowley got carried away." The angel said.

"Yeah, I bet it was all Crowley you son of a bitch!" Bobby growled, launching forward.

Elena and Sam caught him and he stepped back willingly.

"You don't even see it, do you? How totally off the rails you are!" Dean snapped, glaring at the angel that looked nothing like their friend.

"Enough! I don't care what you think."

They all stared at him, shocked at his words. Cas never would have said that. But this wasn't their Cas, that much was clear.

"I've tried to make you understand. You won't listen. So let me make this simple. Please, go home and let me stop Raphael. I won't ask again." Castiel said, staring them down.

"Well, good, 'cause I think you already know the answer." Dean shot back.

Elena took his hand, reminding him that they were going to try to keep calm when it came back so that there was a chance of bringing him back to them. The angel sighed, shaking his head with regret on his face.

"I wish it hadn't come to this. Well rest assured, when this is all over, I will save Sam, but only if you stand down."

Sam stared at him with wide eyes as the rest of them looked confused.

"Save Sam from what?" Elena asked, stepping forward.

Castiel stared at her for a moment before disappearing. They all looked around and caught sight of him behind Sam. The younger Winchester whirled around in time for Castiel to press his fingers to Sam's temple.

* * *

"Hey!"

His eyes snapped open and he saw Robin kneeling next to him.

"Hey. Are you okay?" she said, helping him up.

"Sam. My name is Sam." he finally said.

In the bathroom, he leaned over the sink and splashed his face with water as Robin stood at the door.

"So, uh, what do you remember?" she asked.

"Well." he chuckled. "It might sound pretty strange if I said it aloud."

He picked up a towel to dry his face off.

"Oh, it… it couldn't get any stranger." Robin assured him.

"Yeah. Don't be so sure." Sam said as he walked back into the motel room.

He sighed and shrugged.

"Look, I… I don't know, I mean it's all pretty spotty, you know? I just remember I was, I was with, uh - with two guys and a girl. One of the guys was a… like a male model type and the other was an older guy named, uh, Bobby. The girl… she was pretty and kinda young. Not too young. Maybe twenty? But for some reason I remember thinking that she was strong. really strong."

He shook his head and picked up a leather bound address book.

"Okay. What are you looking for?" Robin sighed.

"Here. Bobby Singer." He said, finding the man's name. "That has to be it."

"Is there a phone number?" she asked.

"No, just an address. Sioux Falls, South Dakota."

"South Dakota." She repeated. "Okay, uh, l-listen, Sam. Sam, right?"

"Yeah." He nodded, looking up at her.

"Look, I'm really sorry, but this is… is where I gotta get off." she sighed.

"Oh, no, of course. No problem." He nodded in agreement.

"Okay. Well, how are you gonna get there?" Robin asked.

Sam spotted something and walked to the desk, picking up a set of keys.

"I guess I'll take my car."

* * *

They landed in the panic room, Dean immediately lying Sam on the cot. Elena and Bobby grabbed spray paint, getting to work on lining the walls with sigils to keep angels out to keep Sam safe from Cas.

"You ready to give up on him now?" Bobby growled.

Elena shot him a look, knowing exactly who he was talking about, before moving to the other side of the room.

"Elena… you have to fix him." Dean said, looking up at her.

She turned with a sigh. She knew that he would ask her to do that.

"Dean… I… I wouldn't even know where to start." She said softly.

"I don't care. Please. He'll die. You have to try." He pleaded.

Elena nodded slowly, setting her can down and walking to the bed. She sat next to Sam, who was twitching in his sleep. Her hands went to his head hesitantly. She really had no idea what she was doing. Her eyes fluttered closed as she tried to slip into his mind. Suddenly a flash of fire went across her vision and sent searing pain through her head. She cried out and threw herself away, stumbling against the wall and pressing her hands to her temples. Another flash of pain went through her head and she screamed.

* * *

"That's mine." Sam said as they walked to the car, the black Impala.

"Are you sure?" Robin asked.

"Oh yeah." He nodded.

"Look, Sam I don't feel right about you going off like this." she said, stopping him before he opened the door.

"Oh, look, don't worry. Y-you've done way to much for me already." Sam assured her.

"That's not what I mean. What I mean is uh... I've got a bad feeling you know, with those IDs and that shady-ass hotel room. Whatever you're looking for, you might not like what you find." Robin warned him.

"What other choice do I have?" Sam scoffed.

Suddenly, as if it echoed around him strangely, he heard a gun cock.

"You could stick around here a little bit longer…" Robin's voice was strangely distant. "I mean get your head straight, instead of going off, flying blind into..."

He slammed his body into hers, knocking it to the ground and bullets flew past them into the Impala's window, shattering it.

"What the hell was that?" Robin gasped.

"Stay down." Sam instructed her.

He got up and looked around wildly, locating the shooter in the shadow of a building. The shooter looked just like him except for the satisfied smirk on his face.

"Sam! Sammy!" Robin yelled, trying to get his attention.

* * *

"Sammy? Come on, snap out of it." Dean pleaded.

Elena was sitting in a chair next to him holding his hand. After the pain finally ended, they knew that she wouldn't be able to fix it. They were stuck until they could figure out how to fix him another way.

"We'll figure it out, Dean. I promise." She murmured.

"How?" he said, his voice breaking.

She pulled him into her arms and stroked his hair, kissing the top of his head. He allowed her to do so, relaxing his shoulders and slumping into her. After a few moments, Bobby walked into the room and they looked up at him.

"Anything?" Bobby asked.

Dean and Elena shook their heads.

"I can't just sit here, Bobby. I've got to help him." Dean decided standing and pacing.

"Dean." Bobby sighed.

"You know, dreamscape his noggin. Something."

"You know what Cas did. The dam inside your brother's head is gone, and all hell's spilling loose. We don't what's going on inside." Bobby tried to convince him.

"I don't care. We have got to do something!" Dean snapped.

Elena remained still, watching Sam as they fought for any sign of life.

"And we will, but right now we got sixteen hours 'til they pop Purgatory. I'm down one man. I can't afford to be down two." Bobby shot back.

"Yeah, and how's that going, huh? We've got no line on Crowley. We got no line on Cas. Balthazar's MIA. I mean, all we've got is Sam, going through whatever the hell this is!" Dean yelled.

"You know…" Bobby poured a glass of whiskey "… this is exactly what Cas wants. For you to fall to pieces. Just try to think of what Sam would want."

The older hunter held the glass out to Dean, who paused before taking it.

"Find Cas, Bobby. Find him now."

Elena's fists tightened and she squeezed her eyes shut. Dean's promise that killing Cas would be a last resort didn't seem like an option anymore, not after everything he'd done now. Who did she protect? The angel who she loved and who saved her or the man she loved and his brother and adopted father who she also loved?

* * *

Sam was driving with Robin in the passenger seat, the Impala speeding down the road.

"Do you smell whiskey?" he asked, sniffing the air.

"Okay, Sam, would you focus?" she demanded, sounding terrified.

"Yeah. Sorry." He nodded.

"Okay, so, who shot at us?" Robin asked.

"I - I didn't really get a good look." he lied.

She would think he was even more insane if he told her.

"Okay, we gotta go to the cops." She said.

"No, look, if we can just get to my friends, they can help us. I know it." Sam said with certainty.

"Okay, you don't know if they're your friends, okay, you don't know anything about anything! Just turn around." she said desperately.

"No. Look, you're safer with me. " he said, shaking his head.

"How do you know that? You're scaring me!"

* * *

Elena was leaning against the wall now, her arms crossed over her chest. Dean leaned over Sam with a penlight, opening his eyes to look into them for any sign of movement.

* * *

Sam swerved the car when a sudden bright flash of light hit his vision. When he blinked it away, he noticed something shocking.

"What? No way."

He stopped the car and jumped out, looking around. Robin followed suit, glaring at him.

"What was that?" she demanded.

"What do you mean? It's daylight." Sam said, gestured around.

"Yeah." She nodded.

"It was night, and now it's day."

"It was always day." Robin said slowly as if she was talking to a child.

"No, no, no, no, no. No, it wasn't. It..." he glanced around with a clueless look.

"What the hell is going on here?" he breathed.

Suddenly he heard something in the woods next to the road and his head snapped around.

"Okay, so I am all filled up on crazy for today. You know what, Sam? I'll… I'll see ya." Robin turned and started to walk away.

"Wait, wait. Wait. Hey, hey, hey."

She stopped, turning around as she sighed heavily.

"Get in the car." Sam muttered, gesturing to the woods with his head.

Hearing the urgency in his voice, Robin complied with his command, climbing back into the passenger's seat.

Sam walked to the back of the car and opened the trunk, his eyes widening when he caught sight of all of the weapons.

"Wow."

He propped open the boot with a shotgun and took a pistol out, cocking it nervously. He slid it into the back of his hands before taking out a shotgun and cocking that too. Then he closed the trunk and turned, walking into the woods with the shotgun aimed. He walked through as silently as he could, feeling like someone was watching him. After a few minutes, he suddenly felt the barrel of a gun press to his head. He turned quickly, seeing his lookalike for a moment before the other man grabbed his shotgun and hit him over the head with it.

Sam collapsed to the ground and watched with fear as the other Sam emptied the shotgun of its shells.

"My God. Am I really that gawky?" his lookalike scoffed, throwing the shotgun on the ground. "Howdy."

"This is impossible." Sam said, shocked.

"Cold. Try again." The other Sam said, smirking.

"I'm uh- I'm hallucinating." He stammered, scrambling up to a standing position.

"Warmer." The man allowed. "But see, normally, you're awake when you're tripping balls."

"I'm dreaming?"

"And someone just won a copy of the home game. We're inside your grapefruit, Sam. Son, you've been juiced."

"I-I don't remember anything." He said.

"Well, your BFF Cas brought the Hell-wall tumbling down and you, pathetic infant that you are, shattered into pieces."

The lookalike pointed at him.

"Piece." Then he pointed at himself. "Piece."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Sam said.

"Why would you? You're jello, pal. Unlike me." the other man said.

"What are you?" he demanded as they circled each other.

"I'm not handicapped. I'm not saddled with a soul. In fact, I used to skipper this meatboat for a while. It was smooth sailing. I was sharp, strong. That is, 'til they crammed your soul back in. Now look at you. Same misty-eyed milksop you always were. That's because souls are weak. They're a liability. Now, nothing personal, but run the numbers. Someone's got to take charge around here, before it's too late." He cocked the gun and Sam turned, running off.

He heard the other Sam shoot but he missed. Once Sam reached the river, he dove behind a large tree and crouched down.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Soulless Sam yelled, his voice echoing around.

He walked to the stream and caught sight of something. With a grin, he walked up to the tree and raised his gun. He fired at the tan jacket three times without hesitation. When he walked closer, he quickly realized that the jacket was draped over a rock rather than a body. Before he could turn, a shot rang out and he fell to the ground, a bullet wound in his chest. Sam stood over him, breathing heavily with the pistol in his hand raised. He watched as Soulless Sam turned over to glare at him, blood leaking out of his mouth.

"You think I'm bad? Wait 'til you meet the other one." He choked out before he died.

Suddenly a bright light flowed out of his body and into Sam's, who yelled in pain.

* * *

When Sam began convulsing on the bed, Dean and Elena both ran to him, holding him down.

"Sammy! Sam!" Dean yelled, panicked.

Their eyes met and they both looked fearful. Dean put a hand on his chest and he suddenly stilled as quickly, the convulsing over as quickly as it began.

* * *

Sam hiked out of the woods, back to the car, to see Robin standing beside it with an understanding look on her face.

"I remember who I am. Everything I did this past year. And I remember you." he said, nodding at her.

_The bar was empty except for him, the crossroads demon, and the female bartender that the demon was using as a bodyshield with a knife to her neck. Sam held a gun up, his eyes flickering over the two._

"_Walk away or the girl dies." The demon threatened._

_Sam stared at them for a moment before shooting her in the stomach. She collapsed to the ground, dead, as the demon looked up at Sam in shock._

"_There goes your leverage." He said without remorse before shooting the demon as well._

Robin looked down to see blood seeping through her shirt.

"Didn't I tell you to turn back, that you wouldn't like what you found?" she said, looking sad.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He breathed.

"Not as sorry as you're gonna be." Robin warned him before disappearing.

* * *

"Elena…" Dean began, glancing over at her.

"I don't want to talk about it, Dean." She sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"I'm just saying…"

"I know, Dean. I know things have changed. I know what Cas has done I see the evidence right in front of me. I know that your objective is no longer of a forgiving spirit. I know that you and Bobby are both going on a shoot to kill mission, okay? I know." She said.

"Just let me…"

"Look what the cat dragged in." Bobby said.

They both turned their heads to see Balthazar standing outside the door of the panic room. Dean stood from where he was sitting.

"Well, at least you mudfish finally got the angel-proofing right." the angel said before looking at Sam.

"How's Sleeping Beauty? You didn't steal any kisses, I trust?" he said, looking between the two.

Neither of them looked amused.

"What the hell took you so long?" Dean asked as they walked out of the panic room to talk to him.

Elena stood at his side and Bobby a step behind them.

"Honestly? I was having second thoughts." Balthazar said, his eyes flashing to Elena as if he could see right through her.

"About?" Dean said.

"About whether to help you. I was thinking maybe... maybe I should rip out your sticky bits instead."

Elena stepped in front of them with narrowed eyes.

"And what did you decide?" Bobby asked.

"Well..." the angel sighed before pulling out a slip of paper and handing it to Dean. "… Cas and Crowley are there. That's where the show gets started."

Dean opened the paper and looked at it to see an address. He handed it to Bobby before looking at Balthazar.

"Alright, well give us a minute to pack up and then zap us there."

"Oh, no, no, no, no. I don't think so." he scoffed, shaking his head.

"Balthazar!" Dean moved forward.

"I'm betraying a friend here. A very powerful friend. We all are. So I think I've stuck my neck out far enough already. Good luck." He nodded at them.

"Balthazar wait…" Elena caught his arm as he turned away. "You should go somewhere. Hide… with women and alcohol however you want. But you should stay away until all of this is over. If they find out that you helped us…"

"I can take care of myself, darling." He said with a grin.

"Not against both of them you can't. Please… stay away from him. He doesn't have time to go looking for you, not now. You helped me out when Gabriel was out of commission and now I want to help you." she said softly.

"Speaking of Gabriel… isn't it strange that none of those archangels have come down here to try and stop it? Even Michael wasn't stupid enough to try to open purgatory."

Elena stared at him with wide eyes, understanding that his words weren't taunting but rather they were a warning. He smirked once before disappearing.

* * *

Castiel was sitting in the empty underground room. He heard the demon approaching from behind him.

"Your Purgatory power-shake, Monsieur." Crowley handed him a jar full of blood. "Half monster, half virgin."

There were a few moments of silence as Crowley walked past him.

"Thank you." Castiel said softly.

Crowley turned to look at him with squinty eyes.

"You seem even more constipated than usual. Maybe get you some Colonblow?" he offered.

Castiel remained quiet before setting the jar down on a table.

"I'm renegotiating our terms." He said, looking up at the demon.

"Is that so? What terms do you propose?" Crowley asked, smirking.

"You get nothing. Not one single soul." He said simply.

The demon remained quiet for a moment before sighing.

"Can't help notice, seems a bit unfairly weighted." The angel didn't answer. "Castiel. You wouldn't dare. I brought you this deal."

"You think I'm handing all that power to the king of Hell? I'm neither stupid nor wicked. You have not exactly kept up your side either. You took Elena and Jeremy and your grunts tortured her so much that I had to remove the experience from her memory." He said, standing up and lifting his shoulders as if he was puffing up his invisible wings.

"Unbelievable. Have you forgotten that you're the bottom in this relationship?" Crowley snapped.

"Here are your options. You either flee, or you die." Castiel offered him.

"We made a pact. Even I don't break contracts like this." Crowley reminded him.

"Flee…" the angel repeated. "… or die."

Crowley scoffed, staring at him.

"Boy, just can't trust anyone these days." He said before disappearing.

* * *

Sam walked through the house with confusion. It didn't look the same at all. There were no lights on, only candles lit all over the place. The furniture was all covered in white sheets. He held the handgun out in front of him as he approached the dark study. Someone was sitting at the desk. Their face was hidden in shadow so he couldn't see him.

"Hey. Hey!" he snapped.

"Oh. Hi, Sam." the other man said, his voice weak and recognizable as his own.

"So, which one are you?" Sam asked.

"Don't you know?" he stood up to reveal a bruised and burned face. "I'm the one that remembers Hell."

* * *

Dean was sitting by the cot looking down at Sam as Bobby packed up a bag of weapons, including two angel-killing blades. When he looked up, he caught sight of Elena's gaze and sighed when she looked at him like he was personally betraying her by bringing them along. He picked up the bag after zipping it up. When he turned to walk, he glanced back at them.

"Time's up." He said.

"Yeah, just a second." He kneeled next to his brother with the piece of paper from Balthazar.

"Alright, this is where we're gonna be, Sam. You get your lazy ass out of bed and come and meet us. Sammy, please." He pleaded.

Elena took his hand once he got up, watching as he put the piece of paper next to Sam with a gun as well. They turned to walk out, up the stairs to gather more weapons. Once they did so, they stood in the middle of the study.

"You sure you don't want to stay here with Sam?" Bobby asked, glancing at Elena.

"We need her, Bobby. We can't leave her here." Dean said.

"Well call me crazy but I'm a little concerned." Bobby said defensively.

"About what?" Elena said.

"About whether or not you can go through with it if it comes time." he said.

She stared at him for a moment.

"I will do what needs to be done." Elena said, a flash of anger in her eyes. "But let's not forget that every time we go in with guns blazing, we always seem to get screwed over."

"You insist on seeing the good in people but that ain't gonna work this time, Elena." the older man said.

"Bobby that's enough." Dean sighed.

"No it's not. If you're gonna be emotional about this all you're gonna do is do more harm. We need to keep a level head about this. We need to…"

"Kill Cas. I'm not stupid, Bobby. I know that's what you're gearing up to do. You won't admit it outright but I can see it. I told you I would do what's necessary. If it'll save everyone, I will do whatever it takes. I know I may lose someone I love but I can't think about that when it comes to saving everyone. I'm not an imbecile nor am I an emotionally compromised teenage girl. I can do this so stop doubting me and get your ass in gear, Bobby Singer." Elena snapped, effectively quieting him.

Dean and Bobby stared at her with surprise.

"All right. Let's go." Bobby agreed.

Dean held his hand out to Elena as Bobby did the same for them to zap over to the address.

"I left my dagger and my jacket upstairs. I'll be back." she said, turning to jog upstairs.

There was a few moments of silence as Bobby and Dean stood there. Suddenly something occurred to both of them.

"Dammit!" Dean snapped, turning to run upstairs with Bobby hot on his heels.

They bursted into the room to find it empty. There was nothing but a sheet of paper on the bed.

_**I will save **__**everyone**_

* * *

"I wish you hadn't come, Sam." the tortured Sam sighed as he walked around the desk.

"I had to. I'm here, right? Out there in the real world, I'm at Bobby's, aren't I?" Sam said, holding the gun up.

"How do you know?" the other man asked.

"This whole time, I've smelt nothing but Old Spice and whiskey. Figured if I could get back here, back to my body, I could... I don't know, I could snap out of it somehow."

"But first you have to go through me." Tortured Sam sighed.

"Why?" he questioned.

"Humpty Dumpty has to put himself back together again, before he can wake up. And I'm the last piece."

"Which means…" Sam lowered the gun and stepped forward. "I have to know what you know. What happened in the cage?"

"Trust me, you don't wanna know it." His counterpart said weakly.

"You're right. But I still have to." Sam replied.

"Sam, you can't imagine. Stay here, go back, find that bartender, go find Jess, but don't do this. I know you. You're not strong enough." Tortured Sam pleaded with him.

Sam took a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

"We'll just have to see."

The other Sam scoffed slightly.

"Why is this so important to you?"

"You know me. You know why. I'm not leaving my brother alone out there." he said.

Tortured Sam walked towards him slowly, picking up a knife. Sam raised his gun again.

"I'm not gonna fight you." he held out the knife, handle first. "But this is your last chance."

Sam sighed, lowering his gun and taking the knife.

"Good luck. You're gonna need it." Tortured Sam nodded at him.

Sam hesitated before stabbing him in the stomach. Tortured Sam fell to the ground, groaning for a moment before he died. Bright light flowed from his body into Sam's just as it had before.

* * *

When Balthazar appeared in the basement, Castiel was sitting on a stool holding a jar of blood.

"You rang, Cas?" he asked.

"Yeah. We have a problem. Dean Winchester is on his way here." Castiel said, turning to look at him.

"Really? Oh. How'd he even know where we were?" the angel said, doing his best to sound surprised.

"Apparently we have a Judas in our midst." He said, setting the jar down.

"Ah." He chuckled lightly. "Holy hell. Who is it? I bet it's that bloody little Cherub, isn't it?"

Castiel stood, staring at him.

"I don't know. But I - I need you to find out."

"Of course. Um, right away. Right away. Uh, but what do you want me to do about Dean?" Balthazar questioned.

"Nothing." Cas said, turning away. "I'll handle him myself."

"Castiel? Are you alright?" Balthazar asked, noting his slumped shoulders with concern.

"First Sam, Elena, and Dean, and now this. I'm doing my best in impossible circumstances. My friends, they abandon me, plot against me. It's difficult to understand." He sighed.

"Well you've… you've always got little old me." Balthazar said with a nervous smile.

Suddenly Castiel disappeared and reappeared behind him, stabbing him through the chest with an angel-killing sword. Balthazar groaned weakly as light poured out of his chest.

"Yes, I'll always have you." he said.

"Cas..." Balthazar whispered before light filled the room.

As he laid the body on the ground, Castiel felt another presence in the room. He turned to see a surprising person standing there.

"Cas… what did you do?" Elena breathed, walking into the room.

His eyes narrowed at her.

"If you are here to kill me, I must warn you. You will not…"

"Shut up you stupid angel!" Elena snapped, glaring at him.

He watched with surprise as she walked up and stood in front of him.

"I am here to make sure that you make it through this alive. I am so furious at you, Castiel, that I can barely look at you. But you're still Cas… somewhere in there. And you need to fix some things. So we're going to get this done, we're going to defeat Raphael, you're going to kill Crowley and you're going to fix Sam, and then we're going to go home." Elena said, staring up at him.

He opened his mouth but she cut him off with a hand over it.

"You can't afford to lose another ally, Castiel. And believe it or not, you can't do this by yourself. So stop talking and tell me what I need to do to get this over with. But first, I want you to promise me something."

He stared at her with suspicious eyes.

"When this is done, and it's over, you will return those souls to purgatory and you'll let me help. We will make sure that you don't die. Do you hear me?" she asked, pulling her hand away from his mouth hesitantly.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked.

"Because I don't want to lose anyone else. Because I still believe that we can be a family." She said.

"Where are Dean and Bobby?" he asked, glancing behind her.

"On their way and they are going to be so pissed at me but we'll deal with that later. So tell me… are we doing this?"

* * *

Dean and Bobby were standing outside of the Impala with binoculars.

"I count a dozen mooks, probably more." Bobby said.

"Demons?" Dean questioned.

Bobby looked over at him with a hesitant look.

"Angels."

Dean's eyes widened.

"Well how the hell are we gonna take out that many angels?"

"If we had your girlfriend with us we could." Bobby said.

"Stop it, Bobby. This isn't gonna help anything. She's just trying to make everything better. You can't blame her for that even if she is going by it the wrong way."

The older hunter sighed and shook his head.

"We don't take out these angels. We'll ninja our way in." Bobby said, changing the subject back.

"Awesome. Yeah, 'til they hear your knee squeak." Dean scoffed.

Bobby tilted his head to the side slightly.

"Shut up." He growled.

"Oh, what, now you got thin skin?" Dean said, rolling his eyes.

"No, shut up. You hear that?"

Dean quieted and they both heard a loud, repetitive booming sound, like the footsteps of a giant. They both turned around slowly.

"What the hell is that?" Dean said.

He looked down and saw a puddle rippling from the vibration.

"T-Rex maybe?"

The noise got louder and Bobby looked around. His eyes widened when he saw the source.

"Holy mother of…"

A gigantic cloud of demon smoke was approaching, roaring towards them with great speed.

"Get in the car! Get in the car!" Dean shouted.

They ran to the Impala and Dean dove into the front as Bobby slammed his way into the back. Before Dean could drive off, the demon smoke flipped the Impala over, crushing it slightly and causing all of the glass to burst out. Without stopping, the smoke continued towards the building.

* * *

Castiel was looking at the paper that outlined the incantation for the ritual when he heard the screaming of his guards. He turned, straightening up to listen as he faced the door. Black smoke suddenly covered the window and his eyes narrowed as he knew exactly what it was.

"Never underestimate the king of Hell, darling."

Castiel turned to see the demon standing there looking proud of himself.

"I know a lot of swell tricks. Now, I think it's time to re-renegotiate our terms."

The angel disappeared and reappeared behind Crowley, who turned around. Castiel put his hand to the demon's forehead, intent on smiting him, but nothing happened. Castiel frowned.

"Sweaty hands, mate." Crowley said with a grimace as he withdrew.

"I don't understand." He admitted.

"You can palm me all you want. I'm safe and sound under the wing of my new partner."

The sound of wings filled the room and Castiel looked to see Raphael appear in the female vessel he was using last time they met.

"Hello, Castiel."

"Raphael." He acknowledged, a hint of fear in his voice. "Consorting with demons. I thought that was beneath you."

"Heard you were doing it. Sounded like fun." Raphael said with a smirk.

"You know, Castiel y-you've said all sorts of shameful, appalling, scatological things about Raphael. I-I've found him… her, to be really quite reasonable." Crowley informed him.

"You fool." Castiel spat. "Raphael will deceive and destroy you at the speed of thought."

"Right, right, 'cause you're such a straight shooter. She… he, has offered me protection against all comers." The demon said proudly.

"In exchange for what?" Castiel asked, expecting that the price was no less than his own head on a platter.

"The Purgatory blood." Crowley answered.

Raphael clicked his tongue.

"Castiel, you really think I would let you open that door? Take in that much power? If anyone is going to be the new God, it's me." she said.

"He's gonna bring the Apocalypse, and worse." Castiel warned Crowley.

"Hey, this is your doing, mate. I'm merely grabbing the best offer on the table. Now, you have two options." He adopted a deep, mocking voice. "Flee, or die."

Castiel backed away, picking up the jar of blood. He stared at it for a moment before tossing it to Crowley and disappearing. He reappeared in the empty room. Elena turned from the wall, her fingers soaked in blood.

"You were right. He brought Raphael." He said.

"I told you. Let's hurry with this. Dean is hurt and God knows what Sam is going through… I want this over as fast as possible."

She looked up at Cas with a questioning gaze.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

* * *

Crowley stood before the blood sigil drawn on the wall. Raphael was standing next to him in waiting as he recited the incantation.

"Ianua magna Purgatorii, clausa est ob nos, lumine eius ab oculis nostris retento."

* * *

Dean's eyes fluttered open and he felt pain radiate through his body. He ignored it, turning his head.

"Bobby. Bobby?"

The older hunter groaned as he woke up.

"Come on, we gotta go."

* * *

"Sed nunc stamus ad limen huius ianuae magnae et demisse, fideliter, perhonorifice, paramus aperire eam. Creaturae terrificae…"

Dean pushed the door open silently as they walked in. They stood at the top of the stairs overlooking the room. Dean glanced at Bobby, who nodded at him.

"… quarum ungulae et dentes, nunquam tetigerunt carnem humanam." The demon recited.

Dean gripped the angel-killing blade and lifted it. He threw it with all of his strength and precision. Raphael reached up and caught it effortlessly without looking back. Then both he and Crowley turned to glare at them. Crowley lifted his hand and suddenly Bobby was flying down the stairs. Then Dean was shoved against the wall and then thrown over them onto a table before slamming into the ground. He groaned painfully, his body screaming with discomfort.

"Bit busy, gentlemen. Be with you in a moment." Crowley said before turning his attention back to the wall.

* * *

Sam stumbled up to the building, groaning painfully. Driving had been hard but it was nothing compared to the pain of walking. He passed the flipped over Impala, seeing with relief that it was empty. Suddenly a memory of the burning fire of Lucifer's cage hit him and he grunted, pressing his hand to his head. Once it ended, he pushed on towards the building, knowing that he had to get there to help.

* * *

"Aperit fauces eius ad mundum nostrum, nunc, ianua magna aperta tandem!" Crowley finally finished, yelling the last word triumphantly.

Silence reigned in the room as nothing happened.

Raphael glanced at Crowley out of the corner of his eye with concern, his proud smirk fading.

"Mm-hm." The demon murmured. "Maybe I said it wrong."

"You said it perfectly." They all looked to see Castiel appear in the room with Elena next to him, both of them staring at Raphael and Crowley.

Dean and Bobby struggling up to their feet, staring at the angel and the half-angel with wide yes.

"What you needed was this." Elena said, holding a different jar in her hands.

She set the jar down on the table next to her. Her eyes flickered over to Dean to check and make sure that his wounds were all right. When she saw him clutching his side that was bleeding, she moved to walk to him. Castiel grabbed her hand before she could. Elena looked back at him with surprise but saw in his eyes that it was not over. She turned back with an apologetic look at Dean and Bobby before she moved back to his side, keeping a hold of his hand.

"I see." Crowley walked to the wall and touched the blood. "And we've been working with..."

He put his finger in his mouth and tasted the substance.

"Dog blood. Naturally." The demon sighed.

"Enough of these games, Castiel. Give us the blood." Raphael snapped.

"You…" Crowley rolled his eyes at the thickness of the angel. "Game's over. His jar's empty."

He pointed at the jar on the table and Raphael's eyes suddenly filled with fear.

"So, Castiel, how'd your ritual go? Better than ours, I'll bet."

Castile closed his eyes, lowering his head. Suddenly a bright light began emanating from him. Elena moved to jerk away but he kept a hold of her. Dean, Bobby, Crowley, and Raphael all shielded their eyes from the blinding light. Ringing pierced their ears but another sound could be heard as well. Beyond the light, they heard someone screaming. Dean knew exactly who it was and he yelled her name even though he couldn't even hear his own shout. When it slowly faded away, they looked to see that Castiel was standing on his own. Elena was collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Dean started to move forward but Castiel looked at him with a warning, almost possessive look.

"You can't imagine what it's like. They're all inside me. Millions upon millions of souls." He breathed.

"Sounds sexy." The demon said. "Exit stage Crowley."

Castiel watched as the demon disappeared. Raphael looked at him with a fearful look.

"Now, what's the matter, Raphael? Somebody clip your wings?" he asked.

"Castiel, please." He pleaded. "You let the demon go, but not your own brother?"

"The demon I have plans for. You on the other hand..." Castiel lifted his hand and snapped his fingers.

Dean and Bobby watched in horror as Raphael exploded into meaty chunks and blood, the angel blade he was holding falling to the ground.

"So, you see, I saved you." Castiel said, walking to the middle of the room.

"Sure thing, Cas. Thank you." Dean said, moving towards Elena to check on her as the angel's back was turned.

"You doubted me, fought against me, but I was right all along. The only one who remained loyal to me was Elena… and I rewarded her for her efforts." He said.

"Okay, Cas, you were. We're sorry. Now let's just defuse you, okay?" Dean said, putting his hand to Elena's throat.

He heart was still beating, luckily, and she was still breathing judging by the rise and fall of her chest. Castiel turned towards him.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You're full of nuke. It's not safe. So, before the eclipse ends, let's get them souls back to where they belong." Dean said.

"Oh no, they belong with me." Castiel said with certainty.

"No, Cas, it's it… it's scrambling your brain." Dean stammered.

Bobby watched on with a wide-eyed look at what was going on.

"No, I'm not finished yet. Raphael had many followers, and I must punish them all severely."

"Listen to me. Listen, I know there's a lot of bad water under the bridge, but we were family once. I'd have died for you. I almost did a few times. So if that means anything to you... please. I've lost my mom, I've lost my dad, and now I've lost Sam. Don't make me lose you too. You don't need this kind of juice anymore, Cas. Get rid of it before it kills us all." Dean tried to convince him.

"You're just saying that because I won. Because you're afraid." Castiel said, not noticing Sam behind him picking up the angel-killing blade. "You're not my family, Dean."

Suddenly Sam thrusted the blade into his back with as much force as he could muster. Just as he did so, Elena sat up with a gasp, her eyes flying open. They all looked at her to see her eyes shining with an electric blue color before it faded. Sam stumbled away from Castiel, who reached back and pulled the sword out. He turned to face them all, nodding at Sam.

"I'm glad you made it, Sam. But the angel blade won't work, because I'm not an angel anymore." he said, dropping it so that it would clatter to the ground.

They all looked up at him with wide eyes, Dean crouching at Elena's side and taking her hand in his.

"I'm your new God. A better one. So you will bow down and profess your love unto me, your Lord. Or I shall destroy you."

* * *

**TWENTY-ONE YEARS AGO**

The young woman couldn't help it as she sat on the bench, her hand laying gently over her swollen stomach. Tears poured down her cheeks endlessly and her chest heaved with sobs and hiccups. When someone sat next to her, she shifted over and buried her face in her hands, trying to call less attention to herself. It felt ridiculous, crying in the middle of a park but she didn't know where else to go.

"Miss Flemming?"

Her head snapped up and she turned to see a familiar man sitting on the bench.

"Mr. Sterling." She sighed, recognizing the man as her former English teacher.

"You look like you need someone to talk to." He said.

The young woman looked at him questioningly. There was something different about him, something in his voice. She brushed it off and shook her head, wiping her tears away.

"I just needed a moment to collect myself. Thank you." she said, staring out at the expansion of green grass in front of them.

"I wasn't asking, Miss Flemming. I know why you're crying."

Her head turned to look at the man again.

"What are you talking about?" she asked softly, a little bit afraid.

"You got a visit from an angel, didn't you?" he said, starting straight into her eyes. "Let me guess… his name was Uriel."

"Mr. Sterling… what are you…?"

"You and I both know I'm not Mr. Sterling, don't we Isobel?"

Her face paled as he stared back at her with a perfectly calm look.

"Who are you?" Isobel demanded, her hands laying protectively over her stomach.

His eyes drifted down to it and he smiled slightly.

"I'm much friendlier than that angel. I know that he told you about your daughter's future. What awaited her under the full moon… the hybrid's sacrifice."

"How do you know this?" her voice raised a little bit and attracted a few concerned looks.

"Shh… my child. I do not wish you any harm. I only wish to collect on a deal I made a very long time ago." he said soothingy.

His eyes fell to the chain that was secured around her neck. The pendant disappeared under the sweater she wore.

"A-a deal?" she stammered.

"Yes, a deal. But… seeing your distress and… cursing my bleeding heart… I am willing to make another." He said, smiling at her.

She felt danger radiating from this man but it was no different from the feeling that she'd felt from the other man, the one who told her about the sacrifice.

"Why would I make a deal with you?" Isobel demanded.

"Because unlike that other man, that angel, I want to make sure your daughter never gets sacrificed. I want to make sure she lives a long and happy life away from anything supernatural. Isn't that what you want?" he asked.

Isobel nodded numbly.

"But the other man…"

"He lied. That's what angels do… they lie. They are not bound by their deals like I am. Like all of my kind are bound. When we make a deal, we stick to it. End of story. I want to make a deal with you to protect your child. I want her to live. The angels want her to die."

"If you're not an angel, what are you?" Isobel questioned, afraid of the answer.

"I think you know the answer to that, sweetheart." He said, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

She shivered underneath his ice-cold touch.

"Do you want my soul?" she asked with fear trembling her voice.

"No, all I want is that necklace. In return, I will ensure that your daughter is kept far away from anything to do with the supernatural. How does that sound?" he asked.

Isobel bit her lip before nodding once.

"You're sure that you'll keep her alive?"

"I will see to it myself for the rest of her life. Your child will remain safe." He promised her.

"And the angels?"

"I'll keep them far away from her. The vampire too."

Isobel glanced out at the park, watching as two little children ran around their parents excitedly.

"I'm giving her away to another family. You'll keep them safe too?" she asked.

"Of course." The man agreed.

"And all I have to do is give you this? Why?" she asked, pulling the necklace out.

"It is very important to me… and to the future of my kind. Your family kept it safe for me for several generations and now I need it back." He said, looking thrilled.

"Okay." Isobel pulled the necklace over her head and reached out, handing it to him.

"There's one more thing." The man said.

"What?" she asked, panicked again.

"These deals… they've got to have a physical pact as well as a spiritual one. And sweetheart, the phrase 'seal it with a kiss' isn't just a fancy one-liner." He said.

Isobel flushed and glanced around once more.

"Okay." She breathed, pressing her hand to her stomach once more.

As he leaned in to kiss her, she could have sworn she saw his eyes flash yellow.

* * *

**Author's Note: I can hardly believe that this part is over. It feels like I just started it. **

**Thank you so much to all of the readers for sticking with me.**

**Thank you even more to the reviewers who made this story, once again, reach over 400 reviews. You're all amazing and I love you.**

**A few things:**

**1. I'm so sorry, I know I said that there would be a poll regarding the name of the next part but I actually found the perfect song to go alone with it. I'm so sorry! ****I promise there will be a vote for the part after the next one.**

**2. If you want to see any scenes in the next part, just let me know and I will try to squeeze them in.**

**3. I will add an author's note to this story when I put the next part up. It will have the name of the story and the link with it.**

**4. Thank you all again. I love you all so much and I hope to connect with you in the next story. Have a great week. It might be a few days before I post the story because I am in the middle of finals. **


	29. New Story!

I've published the next part!

It's called _Fallen Angel_ and you can find it here:

www **dot **fanfiction **dot **net **slash **s **slash **9292172 **slash **1 **slash **Fallen **dash **Angel

Here is the summary:

**Summary: Part Four of the Hells Bells series. After Cas opens purgatory and sets the Leviathan loose on the world, the Winchesters, Elena, and their allies have to deal with their presence in the world as well as their own pasts, loss, and a heartbreaking change that threatens to tear them all apart Dean/Elena **

Thank you so much to everyone who has been a part of this journey so far and I hope that you stick around for this part too. I love you all.


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